
Glass, 
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V^A^^^M Y^V'^^-^-^vI^ 



EXTEACTS 



r E M T !I E 



DIARY AND CORFvESPONDENCE 



OF TUE LATE 



AMOS LAWRENCE 



§ri,ef J^tC0uiit at ^am Infjkuts in Ms fife. 



EDITED BY HIS SON, 



AVILLIAM R. LA^^RENCE, M. D. 



BOSTON: 
aOULD AND LINCOLN, 

69 WASniNGTOS STREET. 

NEW YORK: SHELDON, LAMPORT & ELAKEJIAN. 

LONDON ; TKUBNER 4 CO. 

1855. 






Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1S55, by 
W[LLIAM R. LAWRENCE, 

In tilt; CleiU's OQicc uf the District Court of the District of Massachusetts. 



Sterooijped by 
H OB ART k ROBBIN S. 

T tiiiluiiil Type and Siercoiyr* Foumlety. 

Preea of Ovorgc C. lUuid & Avery. 



€ 1) I a 



ONLY SURVIVING BROTHER, 



AMOS A. LA^VR£:NCE, 



OF BOSTON, 



@55!s Folmne is ^ffjtlioiatitls IngriiifeeD, 



THE EDITOR. 



P H E F A C E . 



Among the papers of the kite Amos Lawi-ence were found copies 
of a large number of letters addressed to his children. 

With the hope that the good counsels there given, during a succession 
of years, extending from their childhood to adult age, might still be 
made profitable to their descendants, he had caused them to be carefully 
preserved. 

These letters, as well as an irregular record of his daily experience, 
were scattered through many voliunes, and required arrangement before 
they could be of use to those for whom they were intended. 

As no one else of the immediate family could conveniently undertake 
the task, the editor considered it his duty to do that which could not 
properly be committed to one less nearly connected with the deceased. 

The present volume, contaiuing what was thought most interesting 
among those letters and extracts, was accordingly prepared for private 
circulation ; and an edition of one hundi-ed copies was printed and dis- 
tributed among the nearest relatives and friends. 

It has been thought by many that the record of such a life as is here 
portrayed would be useful to other readers, and especially to young 
men, — a class in whom 3Ir. Lawrence was deeply interested, and with 



VI PREFACE. 

whom circumstances in his own life had given him a peculiar bond of 
sympathy. 

Although many, among both friends and strangers, have ursed the 
publication of the present memorial, and some have even questioned 
the moral right of withholding from the view of others the light of an 
example so worthy of imitation, much hesitation has been felt in sub- 
mitting to the public the recital of such domestic incidents as are 
treasured in the memory of every flimily; those incidents which cast a 
sunbeam or a shadow across every fireside, and yet possess little or no 
interest for the busy world without. 

At the solicitation of the " Boston Young 3Ien's Christian Union," 
the " Boston Young Men's Christian Association," and the students of 
Williams College, through their respective committees, and at the 
request of many esteemed citizens, the pages which were prepared for 
the eye of kindred and friends alone are now submitted to the public. 
Personal feeling is forgotten in the hope that the principles here incul- 
cated may tend to promote the ends for which the subject of this 
memorial lived :ind labored. 

The interest manifested in his life, and the tributes rendered to his 
memory, have been a source of sincere gratification to his fomily; and 
they would here tender their acknowledgments to all those who have 
expressed their interest and their wishes in regard to thb publication. 

The present volume is submitted with a few unimportant omisions, 
and with the addition of some materials, received after the issue of 
the first edition, which will throw light upon the character and prin- 
ciples of 3[r. Lawrence during his early business career. 

His course was that of a private citizen, who took but little part in 
public measures or in public life. 



PREFACE. m 

To the general reader, therefore, there may be but little to amuse 
in a career so devoid of iueident, and so little connected with the 
stirring events of his times ; but there cannot fiiil to be something 
to interest those who can appreciate the spirit which, in this instance, 
led to a rare fidelity in the fulfilment of important trust:«, and the 
consecration of a life to the highest duties. 

Mr. Lawrence was eminentlj- a religious man, and a deep sense of 
accountability may be discovered at the fowidation of those acts of 
beneficence, which, during his lifetime, might have been attributed to 
a less worthy motive. 

It has been the object of the editor to allow the subject of this 
memorial to tell his own story, and to add merely what is necessary to 
preseiTe the thread of the narrative, or to throw light upon the various 
mattere touched upon in the correspondence. 

It is designed to furnish such materials as will afibrd a history of 
3Ir. Lawrence's charitable efibrts, rather than give a detailed account 
of what was otherwise an uneventful career. 

Such selections from his correspondence are made as seemed best 
adapted to illustrate the character of the man ; such as exhibit his good 
and valuable traits, without attempting to conceal those imperfections, 
an exemption from which would elevate him above the common sphere 
of mortals. 

Most of his letters are of a strictly private nature, and involve the 
record of many private details. His domestic tastes, and his affection 
for his family, often led him to make mention of persons and events 
in such a way that few letters could be wholly given without invading 
the precincts of the family circle. 



VIII PREFACE. 

Tlie engraving at the commencement of the volume is from an 
original portrait, by Harding, in the possession of the editor, a copy 
of which hangs in the library of Williams College. 

It seems also fitting to include a portrait of the Hon. Abbott Law- 
rence, who, for forty-three years, was so intimately associated with the 
subject of this memorial in all the trials, as well as in the triimiphs, 
of business life, and who was still more closely connected by the 
bonds of fraternal afiection and sympathy. A few days only have 
elapsed since he was removed from the scene of his earthly labors. 

The grave has rarely closed over one who to such energy of char- 
acter and strength of purpose united a disposition so gentle and 
forbearing. Amidst the perplexities attending his extended business 
relations, and iu the excitement of the political struggles iu which he 
was called to take part, he was never tempted to overstep the bounds 
of courtesy, or to regard his opponents otherwise than with feelings of 
kindness. 

His wealth was used freely for the benefit of others, and for the 
advancement of all those good objects which tended to promote the 
welfare of his fellow-men. 

That divine spark of charity, which burned with such ceaseless 
energy in the bosom of his elder brother, was caught up by him, and 
exhibited its fruits in those acts of munificence which will make him 
long remembered as a benefactor of his race. 

iSosTON, September 1st, 1855. 



LETTERS, 

KEQUESTING PUBLICATION 



Rooms of the Boston Yomiy Men's Christian Union, 

6 Bedford-street, Boston, June 22, 1855. 

William R. Lawrenxe, Esq. 

Dear Sir : The undersigned, members of the Government of tlie Boston 
Young Men's Christian Union, some of whom have perused the excellent 
memoir of your lionored father, feel deeply impressed with the desire that 
it should be puljlished and cireulated, knowing that its puljlication and 
perusal would greatly benefit the young, the old, and all classes of our 
busy mercantile community. 

Remembering with pleasure the friendship which your father expressed, 
not only in kind words, but in substantial offerings to the treasury and 
library of our Society, the Union would be most happy, should it comport 
with your feelings, to be made the medium of the publication and circu- 
lation of the memoir, which you have compiled with so much ability and 
faithfulness. 

Hoping to receive a favorable response to our desire, 

We are most truly yours, 

TnOMAS GAPPIBLD, n. K. WHITE, 

JOHN SWEETSER, J. P. AIXSWORTH, 

JOSEPH II. ALLEN, W. H. lUCIIAKUSON, 

cnAS. c. SMrrn, francis s. russell, 

C. J. Bl.snoP, FREDERIC IL IIENSHAW, 

F. n. PEA BODY, CIIAHLES F. POTlElt, 

W. IP.VIXU SMITH. TIIORXTO-V E. LUITIKOP. 

AllTUl'R W. nOBART. GEO. S. UALE. 



Rooms of the Boston Young Mcn^s Christian Association, 

Trcmont Temple, Boston, July 10, ISo-j. 
De.iu Sir : 

The Committee on the Library of the Boston Young Men's Christian 
Association beg leave, in its behalf, to tender you sincere thanks for your 
donation of a copy of the ' ' Diary and Correspondence of Amos Lawrence. ' ' 
It will remain to the members of the Association a valued memorial of 
one of its earliest benefactors. It will be yet more prized for its record of 
his invaluable legacy, — the history of a long life — a bright example. 

TIic Committee, uniting with the subscribers, managers of the Associa- 
tion, are happy to improve this opportunity to express tlie hope that you 
may be induced to give the boolc a more general circulation. The kindly 
charities of your late lamented parent are still fresh in impressions of 
gratitude upon their recipients. They require no herald to give them 
publicity. The voice of fame would do violence to their spirit. 

Yet, now that " the good man " can no more utter his words of sym- 
pathy and counsel, — that his pen can no more subscribe its noble bene- 
factions, or indite its lessons of wisdom and experience, — tlie press may 
silently perpetuate those which survive him. 

We must assure you of our pleasure in the knowledge that tlie liljcral 
interest in the Association, so constantly manifested by your revered 
father, is actively maintained by yourself. 

We remain, in the fraternal bonds of Christian regard, 

Yours, truly, 

JACOB SLEEPER, FRANCIS D. STEDMAN, 

J. S. WAKKEN, ELIJAH SWIFT, 

SAMUEL GREGORY, B. C. CLARK, JR., 

LUTHER L. TARBELL, JOSEPH P. ELLICOTT, 

AL0N20 0. TKKNEV, GEO. N. NOTES, 

MOSES W. POND, PEARL MARTLN", 

STEPHEN G. DEliLOIS, w. U. JAMESON, 

HENRY FURNAS, W. F. STOEi'. 

FRANKLIN W. SMITH, 
E. M. PUTNAJI, 
CHAS. L. ANDREWS, 
GEO. C. RAND, 
To H. C. GILBERT, 

William R. Lawrence, M.D. 



Library and Rooms. 



Williams College, June 30, 1855. 
Dear Sir : 

The students of TTilliams College having learned that 3'ou have pre- 
pared, for private distribution, a volume illustrating the character of the 
late Amos Lawrence, whose munificence to this Institution they apjjre- 
ciate, and whoso memory they honor ; the undersigned, a Committee 
appointed for the purpose, express to you their earnest desire that you 
would allow it to be published. 

Very truly yours, 

SAMUEL B. FORIiES, 
E. C. SMITH, 
FRED. W. BEECHER, 
To UEXRY UOPKIXS. 

W. K. L.\\\TiEN'CE, M.D., Boston. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

Page 
BIKTH. — ANCESTKY. — PARENTS, 15 

CHAPTER II. 

EAKLY YEAKS.— SCHOOL DAYS.— APPRENTICESHIP, 20 



CHAPTER III. 

ARRIVAL IN BOSTON. — CLERKSHIP, — COMMENCES BUSINESS. — HABITS, . . . . 28 

CHAPTER IV. 

BUSINESS HABITS.- ins FATHER'S MORTGAGE.— RESOLUTIONS. — ARRIVAL 

OP BROTHERS IN BOSTON 35 

CHAPTER V. 

VISITS AT GROTON.— SICKNESS. — LETTER FROM DR. SH.WTUCK. —ENGAGE- 
MENT.- LETTER TO REV. DR. GANNETT. —MARRIAGE, 40 

2 9 



X CONTENTS. 

CHAPTEE YI. 

BRAMBLE NE'WS. — JUNIOR PARTNER GOES TO ENGLAND. — LETTERS TO 

BROTHER 47 

CHAPTER VII. 

DEATH OF SISTER. —LETTERS, 54 

CHAPTER VIII. 

DOMESTIC HABITS. — ILLNESS AND DEATH OF WIFE, 69 

CHAPTER IX. 

JOURNEYS.— LETTERS.— JOURNEY TO NEW YORK, 63 

CHAPTER X. 

MARRIAGE.— ELECTED TO LEGISLATURE.— ENGAGES IN MANUFACTTTRES. -J 

REFLECTIONS 77 

CHAPTER XI. 

REFLECTIONS. — BUNKER HILL MONUMENT. —LETTERS, 82 

CHAPTER XII. 

JOURNEY TO CANADA.— LETTERS.— DIARY. — CHAKiriES, 89 

CHAPTER XIII. 

CORRESPONDENCE WITH MR. WEBSTER. — LETTERS, 96 



CONTENTS. XI 

CHAPTEK XIV. 

TESTDIONIAL TO MR. WEBSTER. — DANGEROUS ILLNESS. —LETTERS, 102 

CHAPTER XV. 

J0T7RNEY TO NEW HAMPSHIRE. — LETTERS. —RESIGNS OFFICE OF TRUSTEE 

AT HOSPITAL.- LETTERS 109 

CHAPTER XVI. 

DAILY EXERCISE. — REGIMEN. — IMPROVING HEALTH.— LETTERS, 122 

CHAPTER XVII. 

EEFLECTIONS.- VISIT TO TV ASHINGTON. — VISIT TO RAINSFORD ISLAND. 

REFLECTIONS. —VIEW OF DE.VTII. —REFLECTIONS, 137 

CHAPTER XVIII. 

BROTHER'S DEATH.- LETTERS GIFTS. —LETTERS. — BIRTH-PLACE. — WARY. 

— APPLICATIONS FOR AID. — REFLECTIONS.- LETTER FROM REV. DR. 
STONE.— DIARY 147 

CHAPTER XIX. 

REFLECTIONS.— LETTERS.— ACCOUNT OF EFFORTS TO COMPLETE BUNKER 

HILL MONUMENT, 165 

CHAPTER XX. 

INTEREST IN MOUNT AUBURN. —REV. DR. SHARP. —LETTER FROM BISHOP 

McILVAISE.— LETTER FROM JUDGE STORY, 175 



Xn CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER XXI. 

ACaCAINTANCE -WITn PRESIDENT HOPKINS. — LETTEES. — AFFECTION FOR 

bhattle-stheet cnuRcn. — death of mks. appleion.— leitees.— 

AMESBUET CO 182 

CHAPTER XXII. 

DEATH OF niS DAUGHTER. — LETTEKS. — DON ATION TO WILLIAMS COLLEGE. 

— BENEFICENCE.— LETTERS, 193 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

LETTER FROM DR. SHARP. — ILLNESS AND DEATH OF HIS SON. — LEITEES. 

— AFFLICTIONS 203 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

REFLECTIONS. — EXPENDITURES. — LETTERS. — DONATION FOR LIBRARY AT 

WILLIAMS COLLEGE. — VIEWS ON STUDY OF ANATOMY, 213 

CHAPTER XXV. 

DONATION TO LAWRENCE ACADEMY. — CORRESPONDENCE WITH K, G. PARKER. 

-SLEIGH-RIDES.- AVERSION TO NOTORIETY. — CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL, 221 

CHAPTER XXVI. 

CAPTAIN A. s. Mckenzie.— Di.ARY.— AID to Ireland.- madam prescoit. 

— Sm WILLIAM COLEBROOKE, 234 



CONTENTS. Xm 

CHAPTER XXVII. 

MR. LAWRENCE AS AN APPLICANT. — LETTERS. — DIARY. — PRAYER AND 
MEDITATIONS.— FAC-SnilLE OP HAND-TIVRITLNG. —LIBERALITY TO A 
CREDITOR. — LETTERS, 242 

CHAPTER XXVIII. 

REFLECTIONS. — VIEWS ON HOLDING OFFICE. — LETTERS. — C APT. A. SEIDELL 

Mckenzie. — DEATH of bkoiher and of hon. j. mason, 255 

CHAPTER XXIX. 

SYSTEM IN ACCOUNTS. — LETTER FROM PROF. STUART. — LETTERS. — DI.ARY. 

— DR. HAMILTON. —FATHER MATHEW, 2G3 

CHAPTER XXX. 

CODICIL TO WILL. — ILLNESS.— GEN. WHITING. — LETTERS. — DIARY, 371 

CHAPTER XXXI. 

DIARY.— REFLECTIONS. — SICKNESS. — LETTER FROM DR. SHARP. — CORRES- 
PONDENCE, 273 

CHAPTER XXXII, 

AMLN BEY.— AMOUNT OF DONATIONS TO WILLIAMS COLLEGE, 285 

CHAPTER XXXIII. 

LETTERS.— LIKENESS OF ABBOTT LAWRENCE. — DIARY, 292 



^^ CONTENTS. 

CHAPTEE XXXIV. 

BIB T. F. BUXTON. -LETTER FROM LADY BUXTON. -ELLIOn CRESSON.- 
LETTERS, 



. 298 



CHAPTER XXXV. 

LETTERS. -REV. DR. SCORESBY. _ WABASH COLLEGE, 354 

CHAPTER XXXVI. 

WARY. -AMOUNT OF CHARITIES. - LETTERS. - THOMAS TARBELL. - UNCLE 
lOBY.-REV. DR. LOWELL, 



CHAPTER XXXVII. 

CORBESPONDENCE. — DIARY 



.321 



CHAPTER XXXVIII. 

MR. LAWRENCE SERVES AS PRESIDENTIAL ELECTOR. - GEN. FRANKLIN 

PIERCE — SUDDEN DEATH. — FUNERAL 

' 334 

CHAPTER XXXIX. 

SKETCH OF CHARACTER BY REV. DRS. LOTHROP AND HOPKINS 343 

CHAPTER XL. 

CONCLUSION, 

352 



INDEX, 

381 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 



CHAPTER I. 

BIRTH. — ANCESTRY. —PARENTS. 

Amos Lawrence was born in Groton, Mass., on the 
22d of April, 1786. His ancestor, John Lawrence, 
was baptized, according to the records, on the 8th of 
October, 1609, at Wisset, County of Suffolk, England, 
where the family had resided for a long period, though 
originally from the County of Lancaster. 

Butler, in his "History of Groton," has, among 
other details, the following : 

" The first account of the ancestor of the numerous families of 
this name in Groton and Pepperell, which can be relied upon aa 
certain, is, that he was an inhabitant of Watertown as early as 
1635. He probably came in the company ■which came witli 
Governor Winthrop, in 1630. His given name was John, and 
that of his wife was Elizabeth. Whether they were married in 
England or not, has not been ascertained. Their eldest child was 
born in Watertown, January 14, 1635. He removed to Groton, 

15 



16 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

with probably all his family, at an early period of its settlement, 
as his name is found in the records there in 1663. He was an 
original proprietor, having a twenty-acre right." 

Of the parents of the subject of this memoir, the 
same author writes : 

" Samuel Lawrence, the son of Captain Amos Lawrence, sen., 
was an officer in the continental army, in the former part of the 
Revolutionary War. He was in the battle of Bunker Hill, where 
a musket-ball passed through his beaver hat. He was also in the 
battle in Rhode Island, where he served as adjutant under Gen- 
eral Sulhvan. On the 22d day of July, 1777, being at home, on 
a furlough, for the express purpose, he was married to Susanna 
Parker. * * * * 

•' Having faithfully served in the cause of his country during 
the term of his engagement, he retui-ned to his native town, to 
enjoy the peace and quiet of domestic life on his farm. He was 
elected by his townsmen to some of the highest offices in their 
gift ; he was a deacon of the church, and a justice of the peace 
quorum imus. He took a deep interest in providing means for 
the education of youth, particularly in establishing and support- 
ing the seminary in Groton, which now, in gratitude to him and 
his sons, bears the family name. Of this institution he was a 
trustee thirty-thi-ee years, and in its benefits and advantages he 
gave ample opportunities for all his childi-en to participate. Here 
their minds undoubtedly received some of those early impressions, 
the developments and consequences of which it will be the work 
of their biographers hereafter to portray. No deduction, however, 
should here be made from the importance of parental instruction, 
to add to the merit of academical education. The correct lessons 
given by the mother in the nursery are as necessary to give the 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 17 

right inclination to the tender mind as are those of the tutor in 
the highest seminary to prepare it for the business of life and 
intellectual greatness. In the present case, all the duties incum- 
bent on a mother to teach her offspring to be good, and conse- 
quently great, ■were discharged with fidelity and success. Both 
parents lived to see, in the subject of their care, all that they 
could reasonably hope or desire. He died November 8, 1827, 
set. seventy-three; and his venerable widow, May 2, 1845, cet. 
eighty-nine." 

Mr. Lawrence writes, in 184 9, to a friend : 

" My ftither belonged to a company of mimite-men in Groton, 
at the commencement of the Revolution. On the morning of the 
19th of April, 1775, when the news reached town that the British 
troops were on the road from Boston, General Prescott, who was 
a neighbor, came towards the house on horseback, at rapid speed, 
and cried out, ' Samuel, notify your men : the British are com- 
ing.' My father mounted the general's horse, rode a distance of 
seven miles, notified the men of his circuit, and was back ao-ain 
at his father's house in forty minutes. In three hours the com- 
pany was ready to march, and on the ne.xt day (the 20th) 
reached Cambridge. j\Iy father was in the battle of Bunker 
Hill ; received a bullet through his cap, which cut his hair from 
front to rear ; received a spent grape-shot upon his arm, without 
breaking the bone ; and lost a large number of men. His vete- 
ran Captain Farwell was shot through the body, was taken up 
for dead, and was so reported by the man who was directed to 
carry him oflf. This report brought back the captain's voice, and 
he exclaimed, with his utmost power, ' It cutH true ; don't let my 
poor wife hear of this ; I shall live to see my country free.' 
And so it turned out. This good man, who had served at the cap- 



18 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

tare of Cape Breton in 1745, again in 1755, and now on Bunker 
Hill in 1775, is connected with, everything interesting in my early 
days. The bullet was extracted, and remains, as a memento, with 
his descendants. ]\Iy father and mother were acquainted from 
their childhood, and engaged to be married some time in 1775. 
They kejit up a correspondence through 1776, when he was at 
New York ; but, on a visit to her, in 1777 (his mother having 
advised them to be married, as Susan had better be Sam's widow 
than his forlorn damsel), they were married ; but, while the 
ceremony was going forward, the signal was given to call all 
soldiers to their posts ; and, within the hour, he left his wife, 
father, mother, and friends, to join his regiment, then at Cam- 
bridge. This was on the 22d day of July, 1777. Li considera- 
tion of the circumstances, his colonel allowed him to return to his 
wife, and to join the army at Rhode Island in a brief time (two 
or three days). He did so, and saw nothing more of home until 
the last day of that year. The army being in winter quarters, 
he got a furlough for a short period, and reached home in time to 
assist at the ordination of the Rev. Daniel Chaplin, of whose 
church both my parents were then members. His return was a 
season of great joy to all his family. His stay was brief, and 
nothing more was seen of him until the autumn of 1778, when 
he retired from the army, in time to be with his wife at the birth 
of their fii'st child. From that time he was identified with every- 
thing connected with the good of the town. As we children 
came forward, we were carefully looked after, but were taught to 
use the talents intrusted to us ; and every nerve was strained to 
provide for us the academy which is now doing so much there. 
We S077S are doing less for education fo?' our oneans than our 
father for his means." 

Of his mother Mr. Lawrence always spoke in the 



DIARY AXD CORRESPONDENCE. 19 

strongest terms of veneration and love, and in many 
of his letters are found messages of affection, such as 
could have emanated only from a heart overflowing 
with filial gratitude. Her form bending over their 
bed in silent prayer, at the hour of twilight, when 
she was about leading them for the night, is still 
among the earliest recollections of her children. 

She was a woman well fitted to train a family for 
the troubled times in which she lived. To the kind- 
est affections and sympathies she united energy and 
decision, and in her household enforced that strict and 
unhesitating obedience, which she considered as the 
foundation of all success in the education of children. 
Her hands were never idle, as may be supposed, when 
it is remembered that in those days, throughout New 
England, in addition to the cares of a farming estab- 
lishment, much of the material for clothing was manu- 
factured by the inmates of the family. i\Iany hours 
each day she passed at the hand-loom, and the hum 
of the almost obsolete spinning-wheel even now comes 
across the memory like the remembrance of a pleasant 
but half-forgotten melody. 



/ 



CHAPTER II. 

EARLY YEARS. — SCHOOL DAYS. —APPRENTICESHIP. 

The first public instruction received by Mr. Law- 
rence was at the district scliool kept at a short 
distance from his father's house. Possessing a feeble 
constitution, he was often detained at home by sick- 
ness, where he employed himself industriously with 
his books and tools, in the use of which he acquii-ed 
a good degree of skill, as may be seen from a letter 
to his son, at Groton, in 1839 : 

" Near the barn used to be an old fort, -where the people -went 
to protect themselves from the Indians ; and, long since my 
remembrance, the old cellar was there, surrounded by elder- 
bushes and the like. I made use of many a piece of the elder 
for pop-guns and squirts, in the preparation of which I acquired a 
strong taste for the use of the pen-knife and jack-knife. I like 
the plan of boys acquiring the taste for tools, and of their taking 
pains to learn their use ; for they may be so situated as to make 
a very slight acquaintance very valuable to them. And, then, 
another advantage is that they may have exercise of body and 
mind in some situations where they would suffer without. How 
do you employ yourself? Learn as much as you can of farming ; 
for the work of your hands in this way may prove the best 

20 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 21 

resource in securing comfort to you. The beautiful images of 
early life come up in these bright moonlight nights, the like of 
which I used to enjoy in the fields below our old mansion, where 
I was sent to watch the cattle. There I studied astronomy to 
more account than ever afterwards ; for the heavens were impress- 
ive teachers of the goodness of that Father who is ever near to 
each one of his children. May you never lose sight of this 
truth, and so conduct yourself that at any moment you may be 
ready to answer when He calls ! " 

He did not allow liimself to be idle, but, from his 
earliest years, exhibited the sarae spirit of industry 
which led to success in after life. With a natural 
quickness of apprehension, and a fondness for books, 
he made commendable progress, in spite of his disad- 
vantages. His father's social disposition and hospita- 
ble feelings made the house a favorite resort for both 
friends and strangers ; and among the most welcome 
were old messmates and fellow-soldiers, to whose mar- 
vellous adventures and escapes the youthful listener 
lent a most attentive ear. In after life he often 
alluded to the intense interest with which he hung 
upon these accounts of revolutionary scenes, and times 
which "tried men's souls." The schoolmaster was 
usually billeted upon the family ; and there are now 
living individuals high in political and social life who 
served in that capacity, and who look back with 
pleasure to the days passed under that hospitable roof. 

At a later period, he seems to have been transferred 



22 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE, 

to auotlier school, in tlie adjoining district, as will be 
seen by tbe following extract of a letter, written in 
1844, to a youth at the Groton Academy : 

" More than fifty years ago, your father and I were school 
children together. I attended then at the old meeting-house, or 
North Barn, as it was called, by way of derision, where I once 
remember being in great tribulation at having lost my spelling- 
book on the way. It was afterwards restored to me by Captain 
Richardson, who found it under his pear-tree, where I had been, 
without leave, on my way to school, and with the other children 
helped myself to his fruit." 

From the district school, Mr. Lawrence entered the 
Groton Academy, of which all his brothers and sisters 
were members at various times. As his strength was 
not sufficient to make him useful upon the farm, in 
the autumn of 1799 he was placed in a small store, 
in the neighboring town of Dunstable. There he 
passed but a few months ; and, on account, perhaps, 
of greater facilities for acquiring a knowledge of 
business, he was transferred to the establishment of 
James Brazer, Esq., of Groton, an enterprising and 
thrifty country merchant, who transacted a large busi- 
ness, for those times, Avith his own and surrounding 
towns. The store was situated on the high road lead- 
ing from Boston to New Hampshire and Canada, and 
was, consequently, a place of much resort, both for 
travellers and neighbors who took an interest in pass- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 23 

iug events. Several clerks were employed ; and, as 
Mr. Brazer did not take a very active part in the 
management of the business, after a year or two nearly 
the whole responsibility of the establishment rested 
upon young Lawrence. The stock consisted of the 
usual variety kept in the country stores of those days, 
when neighbors could not, as now, run down to the 
city, thirty or forty miles distant, for any little matter 
of fancy, and return before dinner-time. Puncheons 
of rum and brandy, bales of cloth, kegs of tobacco, 
with hardware and hosiery, shared attention in common 
with silks and thread, and aU other articles for female 
use. Among other duties, the young clerk was obliged 
to dispense medicines, not only to customers, but to 
all the physicians within twenty miles around, who 
depended on this establishment for their supply. 

The confidence in his good judgment was such that 
he was often consulted, in preference to the physician, 
by those who were suffering from minor ails ; and 
many were the extemporaneous doses which he admin- 
istered for the weal or woe of the patient. The same 
confidence was extended to him in all other matters ; 
no one doubted his assertion ; and the character for 
probity and fairness which accompanied him through 
life was here established. 

The quantity of rum and brandy sold would surprise 
the temperance men of modern days. At eleven 
o'clock, each forenoon, some stimulating beverage, 



24 DIARY AND CORRESPONDEJnCE. 

according to the taste of the clerk who compounded 
it, was served out for the benefit of clerks and cus- 
tomers. JMr. Lawrence partook with the others ; but, 
soon finding that the desire became more pressing at 
the approach of the hour for indulgence, he resolved 
to discontinue the habit altogether : 

" His mind livas soon made up. Understanding perfectly the 
ridicule lie should meet Tvith, and which for a time he did meet 
■with in its fullest measui-e, he yet took at once the ground of 
total abstinence. Such a stand, taken at such an age, in such 
ckcumstances of temptation, hefore temperance societies had heen 
heai-d of or the investigations had been commenced on ivhich they 
are based, was a practical instance of that judgment and decision 
which chai-acterized him tlu'ough life." * 

In regard to this resolution, he writes, many years 
afterward, to a young student in college : 

"In the first place, take this for your motto at the commence- 
ment of your journey, that the difference of going just right, or 
a little w7-ong, will be the difference of finding youi-self in good 
quai'ters, or in a miserable bog or slough, at the end of it. Of 
the whole number educated in the Groton stores for some years 
before and after myself, no one else, to my knowledge, escaped 
the bog or slough ; and my escape I trace to the simple fact of 
my having put a restraint upon my appetite. We five boys were 
in the habit, every forenoon, of making a di-ink compounded of 

• President Hopkins's Sermon in commemoration of Amos Lawrence. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 25 

rum, raisins, sugar, nutmeg, &c., witli biscuit, — all palatable to 
eat and drink. After being in the store four weeks, I found 
myself admonished hj my appetite of the approach of the hour 
for indulgence. Thinking the habit might make trouble if 
allowed to grow stronger, without further apology to my seniors 
I declined partaking with them. My first resolution was to 
abstain for a week, and, when the week was out, for a month, 
and then for a year. Finally, I resolved to abstain for the rest 
of my apprenticeship, which was for five years longer. During 
that whole period, I never drank a spoonful, though I mixed 
gallons daily for my old master and his customers. I decided 
not to be a slave to tobacco in any form, though I loved the odor 
of it then, and even now have in my drawer a superior Havana 
cigar, given me, not long since, by a friend, but only to smell of 
I have never in my life smoked a cigar ; never chewed but one 
quid, and that was before I was fifteen ; and never took an ounce 
of snuif, though the scented rappee of forty years ago had great 
charms for me. Now, I say, to this sunple fact of starting just 
right am I indebted, with God's blessing on my labors, for my 
present position, as well as that of the numerous connections 
sprung up around me. I have many details that now appear as 
plain to me as the sun at noonday, by which events are connected 
together, and which have led to results that call on me to bless the 
Lord for all his benefits, and to use the opportunities thus per- 
mitted to me in cheering on the generation of young men who 
have claims upon my sympathies as relations, fellow-townsmen, or 
brethren on a more enlarged scale." 

Of this period he writes elsewhere, as follows : 

" When I look back, I can trace the small events which hap- 
pened at your age as having an influence upon all the after 
4 



26 DIARY AND COERESPONDENvY!- 

tilings. My academy lessons, little academy balls, and eight-cent 
expenses for music and gingerbread, the agreeable partners in the 
hall, and pleasant companions in the stroll, all helped to make me 
feel that I had a character even then ; and, after leaving school 
and going into the store, there was not a month passed before I 
became impressed ivith the opinion that restraint upon aj^petite 
was necessary to prevent the slavery I saw destroying numbers 
around me. Many and many of the farmers, mechanics, and 
apprentices, of that day, have filled drunkards' graves, and have 
left destitute families and friends. 

" The knowledge of e very-day affairs which I acquired in my 
business apprenticeship in Groton has been a source of pleasure 
and profit even in my last ten years' discipline." 

The responsibility thrown upon the young clerk was 
very great ; and he seems cheerfully to have accepted 
it, and to have given himself up entirely to the per- 
formance of his business duties. His time, from early 
dawn till evening, was fully taken up ; and, although 
living in the family of his employer, and within a mile 
of Ms father's house, a whole week would sometimes 
pass without his having leisure to pay even a flying 
visit. 

But few details of his apprenticeship can now be 
gathered either from his contemporaries or from any 
allusions in his own writings. He was disabled for a 
time by an accident Avhich came near being fatal. In 
assisting an acquaintance to unload a gun, by some 
means the charge exploded, and passed directly 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 27 

through the middle of his hand, making a round hole 
like that of a bullet. Sixty-three shot were picked 
out of the floor after the accident, and it seemed 
almost a miracle that he ever again had the use of 
his hand. 



CHAPTER III. 

ARRIVAL IN BOSTON. — CLERKSfflP. — COMMENCES BUSINESS.— 
ILVBITS.— LETTERS. 

On the 22d of April, 1807, Mr. Lawrence became 
of age ; and his apprenticeship, which had lasted seven 
years, was terminated. 

On the 29th of the same month, he took his father's 
horse and chaise, and engaged a neighbor to drive 
him to Boston, with, as he says, many years after- 
wards, — 

" Twenty dollars in my pocket, but feeling richer than I had 
ever felt before, or have felt since ; so rich that I gave the man 
•who came with me two dollars to save him from any expense, and 
insure him against loss by his spending two days on the journey 
here and back (for which he was glad of an excuse)." 

His object was to make acquaintances, and to estab- 
lish a credit which would enable him to commence 
business in Groton on his own account, in company 
with a fellow- apprentice. 

A few days after his arrival in Boston, he received 
the offer of a clerkship from a respectable house ; and, 

28 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 29 

wishing to familiarize Mmself with the modes of con- 
ducting mercantile aifairs in the metropolis, and with 
the desire of extending his acquaintance with business 
men, he accepted the offer. His employers were so 
Avell satisfied with the capacity of their new clerk, 
that, in the course of a few months, they made a 
proposition to admit him into partnership. Without 
any very definite knowledge of their affairs, he, much 
to their surprise, declined the offer. He did not con- 
sider the principles on which the business was con- 
ducted as the true ones. The result showed his 
sagacity ; for, in the course of a few months, the firm 
became insolvent, and he was appointed by the cred- 
itors to settle their affairs. This he did to their 
satisfaction ; and, having no further occupation, de- 
cided upon commencing business on his own account. 
He accordingly hired a small store in what was then 
called Cornhill, and furnished it by means of the credit 
which he had been able to obtain through the con- 
fidence with which he had inspired those whose 
acquaintance he had made during his brief sojourn in 
Boston. 

On the 17th of December, 1807, he commenced 
business, after having engaged as his clerk Henry 
Whiting, in after years well and honorably known as 
Brigadier-General Whiting, of the United States Army. 

Mr. Lawrence writes to General Whiting, in 18-49, 
as follows : 



30 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" I have just looked into my first sales-book, and there see the 
entries made by you more than forty-one years ago. Ever since, 
you have been going up from the cornet of di-agoons to the 
present station. Abbott, who took your place, is now the repre- 
sentative of his country at the Court of St. James." 

In a memorandum in one of his account-books, he 
thus alkides to his condition at that time : 

"I was then, in the matter of property, not worth a dollar. 
My father was comfortably off as a former, somewhat in debt ; 
with perhaps four thousand dollars. My brother Luther was in 
the practice of law, getting forward, but not worth two thousand 
dollars ; William had nothing ; Abbott, a lad just fifteen years 
old, at school ; and Samuel, a child seven years old." 

Of the manner in which he occupied himself when 
not engaged about his business, he writes to his sou 
in 1832 : 

" "When I first came to this city, I took lodgings in the family 
of a widow who had commenced keeping boarders for a living. 
I was one of her first, and perhaps had been in the city two 
months when I went to this place ; and she, of course, while I 
remained, was inclined to adopt any rules for the boarders that I 
prescribed. The only one I ever made was, that, after supper, 
all the boarders who remained in the public room should remain 
quiet at least for one hour, to give those who chose to study or 
read an opportunity of doing so without distui-bance. The con- 
sequence was, that we had the most quiet and improving set of 
young men in the town. The few who did not wish to comply 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 31 

with the regulation went abroad after tea, sometimes to the 
theatre, sometimes to other places, but, to a man, became bank- 
rupt in after life, not only in fortune, but in reputation ; while a 
majority of the other class sustained good characters, and some 
are now living who are ornaments to society, and fill important 
stations. The influence of this small measure will perhaps be 
felt throughout generations. It was not less favorable on myself 
than on others." 

Mr. Lawrence was remarkable through life for the 
most punctilious exactness in all matters relating to 
business. Ever prompt himself in all that he under- 
took, ho submitted with little grace to the want of 
the same good trait in others. He writes to a friend : 

" And now having delivei-ed the message, having the power 
at the present moment, and not having the assurance that I shall 
be able to do it the next hour, I will state that I practised upon 
the maxim, ' Business before friends,' from the commencement 
of my course. During the first seven years of my business in 
this city, I never allowed a bill against me to stand unsettled 
over the Sabbath. If the purchase of goods was made at auction 
on Saturday, and delivered to me, I always examined and settled 
the bill by note or by crediting it, and having it clear, so that, 
in case I was not on duty on Monday, there would be no trouble 
for my boys; thus keeping the business before me, instead of 
allowing it to drive me." 



Absence from Ms home seemed only to strengthen 
:e feelings 
its inmates : 



the feelings of attachment with which he regarded 



32 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

"My interest in home, and my desire to have something to 
tell my sisters to instruct and improve them, as well as to hear 
their comments upon -nrhatever I commimicated, was a powerful 
motive for me to spend a portion of each evening in my hoarding- 
house, the first year I came to Boston, in reading and study." 

During the same month in "which he commenced his 
business, he opened a correspondence with one of his 
sisters by the following letter : 

" Boston, December, 1807. 

" Deak E. : Although the youngest, you are no less dear to 
me than the other sisters. To you, therefore, I ought to be as 
liberal in affording jjleasure (if you can find any in reading my 
letters) as to S. and M. ; and, if there is any benefit resulting 
from them, you have a claim to it as well as they. From these 
considerations, and with the hope that you will write to me 
whenever you can do so with convenience, I have begun a cor- 
respondence which I hope will end only with life. To be able 
to write a handsome letter is certainly a very great accomplish- 
ment, and can best be attained by practice ; and, if you now 
begin, I have no hesitation in saying, that, by the time you are 
sixteen, you will be mistress of a handsome style, and thrice the 
quantity of ideas you would otherwise possess, by omitting this 
part of education. At present, you can write about any subject 
that will afford you an opportunity of putting together a sen- 
tence, and I shall read it with pleasure. I mention this, that you 
need not fear wiiting on subjects not particularly interesting to 
me ; the mamier at present being of as much consequence as the 
matter. 

" For our mutual pleasure and benefit, dear E., I hope you 
will not fail to gratify your affectionate brother Ajios." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 



33 



To show the nature of the correspondence between 

the parties, extracts are given below from a letter 

dated within a few days of the preceding, and ad- 
dressed to another sister : 

" From you, my dear sister, the injunction not to forget the 
duties of religion comes with peculiar grace. You beg I will 
pardon you for presuming to offer good advice. Does a good act 
require pardon ? Not having committed an offence, I can grant 
you no pardon ; but my thanks I can give, which you will accept, 
with an injunction never to withhold any caution or advice which 
you may think necessary or beneficial on account of fe\Yer years 
having passed over your head. * * * * 

" Many, when speaking of perfection, say it is not attainable, 
or hitherto unattainal>le, and it is therefore vain to try or hope 
for it. To such I would observe, that, from motives of duty to 
our Creator, and ambition in ourselves, we ought to strive for it, 
at least so far as not to be distanced by those who have preceded 
us. Morality is strict justice between man and man ; therefore, 
a man being moral does not imply he is a Christian, but being a 
Christian implies he is a moral man. * * * * 

" We ought to use our utmost endeavors to conquer our pas- 
sions and evil propensities, to conform our lives to the strict rules 
of morality and the best practice of Christianity. I cannot go 
further, without introducing the subject of evil speaking, which 
you will perhaps think I have exhausted. * * * 

" I do not, my dear M., set myself up as a reformer of human 
nature, or to find fault with it ; but these observations (which 
have occurred to me as I am writing) may serve to show how ajit 
we are to do things which afford us no pleasure, and which often- 



34 DIAIIY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

times are attended with the most disagreeable consequences. If 
you receive any improvement from the sentiments, or pleasure 
from the perusal, of this letter, the time in writing will be con- 
sidered as well spent by your affectionate brother A mo'^ " 



CHAPTER IV. 

BUSINESS H.\BITS.— HIS FATIIER'S MORTGAGE. —RESOLUTIONS. — 
ARRIV.\I, OF BROTHERS IN BOSTON. 

]Mr. Lawrence had early formed, in the management 
of his affairs, certain principles, to which he rigidly 
adhered till the close of life. He writes : 

'• I adopted the plan of keeping an accurate account of mer- 
chandise bought and sold each day, with the profit as far as 
practicable. This plan was pursued for a number of years ; and 
I never found my merchandise fall short in taking an account of 
stock, which I did as often at least as once in each year. I was 
thus enabled to form an opinion of my actual state as a business 
man. I adopted also the rule always to have property, after my 
second year's business, to represent forty per cent, at least more 
than I owed ; that is, never to be in debt more than two and a 
half times my capital. This caution saved me from ever getting 
embarrassed. If it were more generally adopted, we should see 
fewer failures in business. Excessive credit is the rock on which 
so many business men are broken. 

" When I commenced, the embargo had just been laid, and 
with such restrictions on trade that many were induced to leave 
it. But I felt great confidence, that, 1iy industry, economy, and 
integi'ity, I could get a living ; and the experiment showed that 
I was right. ]\Iost of the young men who commenced at that 



36 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

period foiled by spending too much money, and using credit too 
freely. 

" I made about fifteen hundred dollars the first year, and more 
than four thousand the second. Probably, had I made four 
thousand the first year, I should have f:\iled the second or third 
year. I practised a system of rigid economy, and never allowed 
myself to spend a fourpence for unnecessary objects until I had 
acquired it." 

It is knoAvn to many of Mr. Lawrence's friends that 
his father mortgaged his farm, and loaned the pro- 
ceeds to his son ; thereby enabling him, as some 
suppose, to do what he could not have done by his 
own unaided efforts. To show how far this supposition 
is correct, the following extract is given. It is copied 
from the back of the original mortgage deed, now 
lying before the writer, and bearing date of September 
1, 1807. The extract is dated March, 1847 : 

" The review of this transaction always calls up the deep 
feelings of my heart. My honored father brought to me the one 
thousand dollars, and asked me to give him my note for it. I 
told him he did wrong to place himself in a situation to be made 
unhappy, if I lost the money. He told me ho ffuesscd I 
would n't lose it, and I gave him my note. The first thing I 
did was to take four per cent, premium on my Boston bills (the 
difierence then between passable and Boston money), and send 
a thousand dollars in bills of the Hillsborough Bank to Amherst, 
New Hampshire, by my father, to my brother L. to carry to the 
bank and get specie, as he was going there to attend court that 
week. My brother succeeded in getting specie, principally in 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 37 

silver change, for the bills, and returned it to me in a few days. 
In the mean time, or shortly after, the bank had been sued, the 
bills discredited, and, in the end, jiroved nearly worthless. I 
determined not to use the money, except in the safest way ; and 
therefore loaned it to Messrs. Parkman, in whom I had entire 
confidence. After I had been in business, and had made more 
than a thousand dollars, I felt that I could repay the money, 
come what would of it ; being insured against fire, and trusting 
nobody for goods. I used it in my business, but took care to pay 
off the mortgage as soon as it would be received. The whole 
transaction is deeply interesting, and calls forth humble and 
devout thanksgiving to that merciful Father who has been to us 
better tlian our most sanguine hopes." 

In alluding to this transaction in another place, he 

says : 

" This incident shows how dangerous it is to the independence 
and comfort of families, for parents to take pecuniary responsibil- 
ities for their sons in trade, beyond their power of meeting them 
without embarrassment. Had my Hillsborough Bank notes not 
been paid as they were, nearly the whole amount would have 
been lost, and myself and family might probably have been 
ruined. The incident was so striking, that I have uniformly 
discouraged young men who have applied to me for credit, offer- 
ing theu" fathers as bondsmen ; and, by doing so, I have, I 
believe, saved some respectable families from ruin. My advice, 
however, has been sometimes rejected with anger. A young man 
who cannot get along without such aid will not be likely to get 
along with it. On the first day of January, 1808, I had been 
but a few days in business ; and the profits on all my sales to 
that day were one hundred and seventy-five dollars and eighteen 



38 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

cents. The expenses wore to come out, and the balance was my 
capital. In 1842, the sum had increased to such an amount as I 
thought would be good for my descendants ; and, from that time, 
I have been my own executor. How shall I show my sense of 
responsibility ? Surely by active deeds more than by unmeaning 
words. God gi-ant me to be true and faithful in his work ! " 

Having become fairly established in Bo.ston, Mr. 
Lawrence concluded to take his brother Abbott, then 
fifteen years of age, as an apprentice. On the 8th of 
October, 1808, Abbott accordingly joined his brother, 
who says of him : 

" In 1808, he came to me as my apprentice, bringing his 
bundle under his arm, with less than three dollars in his pocket 
(and this was his fortune) ; a first-rate business lad he was, but, 
like other l)i'ight lads, needed the careful eye of a senior to guard 
him from the pitfalls that he was exposed to." 

In his diary of February 10, 1847, he writes : 

" In the autumn of 1809, I boarded at Granger's Coifee 
House, opposite Brattle-street Church ; and, in the same house, 
Mr. Charles White took up his quarters, to prepare his then new 
play, called the ' Clergyman's Daughter.' He spent some 
months in preparing it to secure a run for the winter ; and used 
to have Tennett, Canfield, Robert Treat Paine, and a host of 
others, to dine with him very often. I not unfrequently left the 
party at the dinner-table, and found them there when I returned 
to tea. Among the boarders was a fair proportion of respectable 
young men, of different pursuits : and, having got somewhat 



DIARY AND COREESPONDENCE. 39 

interested for White, ive all agreed to go, and help bring out his 
' Clergyman's Daughter.' Mrs. Darley ■was the ladj to per- 
sonate her, and a more beautiful creature could not be found. 
She and her husband (\vho sung his songs better than any man I 
had ever heard then) had all the spirit of parties in interest. 
We filled the boxes, and encored, and all promised a great run. 
After three nights, ive found few beside the friends, and it was 
laid aside a failure. In looking back, the picture comes fresh 
before me ; and, among all, I do not recollect one who was the 
better, and most were ruined. The theatre is no better now." 

In 1849, lie resumes : 

"About this time, my brother William made me a little visit 
to recruit his health, which he had impaired by hard work on the 
farm, and by a generous attention to the joyous meetings of the 
young folks of both sexes, from six miles around, which meetings 
he never allowed to break in upon his work. He continued his 
visit through the winter, and became so much interested in my 
business that I agreed to furnish the store next my own for his 
benefit. Soon after that, I was taken sick ; and he bought goods 
for himself to start with, and pushed on without fear. From 
that time, he was successful as a business man. He used his 
property faithfully, and I trust acceptably to the Master, who has 
called him to account for his talents. Our father's advice to us 
was, 

" 'Do not fall out by the way, for a three-fold cord is not 
quickly broken.' " 



CHAPTER Y. 

VISITS AT GROTON. — SICKNESS. — LETTER FROM DR. SIIATTLCK.— 
ENGAGEMENT. — LETTER TO REV. DR. GANNETT. — MARRIAGE. 

During these years, Mr. Lawrence was in the habit 
of making occasional visits to his parents in Groton, 
thirty-five miles distant. His custom was to drive 
himself, leaving Boston at a late hour on Saturday 
afternoon, and often, as he says, encroaching upon the 
Sabbath before reacliing home. After midnight, on 
Sunday, he would leave on Ms return ; and thus was 
enabled to reach Boston about daybreak on Monday 
morning, without losing a moment's time in his 
business. 

In 1810, Mr. Lawrence was seized with an alarm- 
ing illness, through which he enjoyed the care and 
skiU of his friend and physician, the late Dr. G. C. 
Shattuck, who, shortly before his own death, trans- 
mitted the following account of this illness to the 
editor of these pages, who also had the privilege of 
enjoying a friendship so much prized by his father : 

" Feb. 28, 1853. 

" More than forty years ago, New England was visited with a 

pestilence. The people were stricken with panic. The first vic- 

40 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE, 41 

tims were taken oiF una-wares. Jii many towns in the interior of 
the commonwealth, the people assembled in town meeting, and 
voted to pay, from the town treasury, physicians to be in readiness 
to attend on any one assailed with the premonitory symptoms of 
disease. The distemper was variously named, cold plague, spot- 
ted fever, and malignant remittent fever. After a day of unusual 
exercise, your fiither was suddenly taken ill. The worthy family 
in which he boarded were prompt in their sympathy. A phj'si- 
cian was called : neighbors and friends volunteered their aid. 
Remedies were diligently employed. Prayers in the church were 
offered up for the sick one. A pious father left his home, on the 
banks of the Nashua, to be with his son. To the physician in 
attendance he gave a convulsive grasp of the hand, and, with 
eyes brimful of tears, and choked utterance, articulated, ' Doctor, 
if Amos has not money enough, I have ! ' To the anxious fother 
his acres seemed like dust in the balance contrasted with the life 
of his son. He was a sensible man, acting on the principle that 
the stimulus of reward is a salutary adjunct to the promptings of 
humanity. God rebuked the disorder, though the convalescence 
was slow. A constitution with an originally susceptible nervous 
temj)erament had received a shock which rendered him a long 
time feeble. An apprentice, with a discretion beyond his years, 
maintained a healthy activity in his mercantile operations, to the 
quiet of his mind. He did not need great strength ; for sagacity 
and decision supplied every other lack. Supply and demand were 
as familiar to him as the alphabet. He knew the wants of the 
country, and sources of supply. Accumulation followed his 
operations, and religious principle regulated the distribution of 
the cumbrous surplus. A sensible and pious father, aided by a 
prudent mother, had trained the child to become the future man. 
You will excuse my now addressing you, when you recur to the 
6 



42 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

tradition that I had participated in the joy of the house when 
you first opened your eyes to the light. That God's promises to 
the seed of the righteous may extend to you and yours, is tlie 
prayer of your early acquaintance, 

" George C. Shattuck." 

But few details of Mr. Lawrence's business from 
tliis (late until 1815 are now found. Suffice it to 
say, that, through the difficult and troubled times in 
which the United States were engaged in the war 
with England, his efforts were crowned with success. 
Dark clouds sometimes arose in the horizon, and vari- 
ous causes of discouragement from time to time cast 
a gloom over the mercantile world ; but despondency 
formed no part of his character, while cool sagacity 
and unceasing watchfulness and perseverance enabled 
him to weather many a storm which made shipwreck 
of others around him. 

Amidst the engrossing cares of business, however, 
Mr. Lawrence found time to indulge in more genial 
pursuits, as will be seen from the following lines, 
addressed to his sister : 

" Boston, Marcli 17, 1811. 
"My not having -written to you since your return, my dear 
]M.. has proceeded from my having other numerous avocations, 
and partly from a carelessness in such afHiirs reprehensible in me. 
You will, perhaps, be surprised to learn the extent and import- 
ance of my avocations ; for, in addition to my usual routine of 
mercantile affau's, I have lately been engaged in a negotiation of 



DIARY AND COllRESPONDEXCE. 43 

the first importance, and which I have accomplished very much to 
my own satisfaction. It is no other than having offered myself as 
a husband to your very good friend Sarah Richards, which offer 
she has agi-eed to accept. So, next fall, you must set your mind 
on a wedding. Sarah I have long known and esteemed : there is 
such a reciprocity of feelings, sentiments, and principles, that I 
have long thought her the most suitable person I have seen for 
me to be united with. Much of my time, as you may well suppose, 
is spent in her society ; and here I cannot but observe the infi- 
nite advantage of good sense and good principles over the merely 
elegant accomplishments of fashionable education. By the latter 
we may be fascinated for a time ; but they will afford no satisfoc- 
tion on retrospection. The former you are compelled to respect 
and to love. Such qualities are possessed by Sarah ; and, were 
I to say anything further m her favor, it would be that she is 
beloved by you. Acheu, my dear sister, A. L."' 

As this A'olume is intended only for the perusal of 
the family and friends of the late Amos Lav?rence, no 
apology need he made for introducing such incidents 
of his life, of a domestic nature, as may be thought 
interesting, and which it might not seem advisable to 
introduce under other circumstances. Of this nature 
are some details connected with this engagement. 
The young lady here alluded to, whose solid qualities 
he thus, at the age of twenty-five and in the first 
flush of a successful courtship, so calmly discusses, in 
addition to these, possessed personal charms sufficient 
to captivate the fancy of even a more philosophical 
admirer than himself. Her father, Giles Richards, 



44 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

was a man of great ingenuity, who resided in Boston 
at the close of the Revokitionary War. He owned an 
establishment for the manufactory of cards for prepar- 
ing wool. A large number of men were employed ; 
and, at that time, it was considered one of the objects 
worthy of notice by strangers. As such, it was visited 
by General Washington on his northern tour ; and may 
be found described, in the early editions of Morse's 
Geography, among the industrial establishments of 
Boston. As in the case of many more noted men of 
inventive genius, his plans were more vast than the 
means of accomplishment ; and the result was, loss of 
a handsome competency, and embarrassment in busi- 
ness, from which he retired with unsullied reputation, 
and passed his latter years in the vicinity of Boston. 
Here the evening of his life was cheered by the con- 
stant and watchful care of his wife, whose cheerful and 
happy temperament shed a radiance around his path, 
which, from a naturally desponding character, might 
otherwise have terminated in gloom. She had been 
the constant companion of her husband in all his jour- 
neyings and residences in nearly every State in the 
Union, where his business had called him ; and, after 
forty years, returned to die in the house where she was 
born, — the parsonage once occupied by her father, the 
Rev. Amos Adams, of Roxbury, who, at the time of 
the Revolution, was minister of the church now under 
the pastoral care of the Rev. Dr. Putnam. 



DIARY AXD CORRESPONDENCE. 45 

Sarah had beea placed in the family of the Eev. Dr. 
Chaplin, minister of the church at Groton, and was a 
member of the academy when ]Mr. Lawrence first made 
her acquaintance. " The academy balls, the agreeable 
partners in the hall, the pleasant companions in the 
stroll," remembered with so much pleasure in after life, 
were not improbably associated with this acquaintance, 
who had become a visitor and friend to his own sisters. 
After a separation of four years, the acquaintance was 
accidentally renewed in the year 1807. Sarah was on 
a visit at Cambridge to the family of Caleb Gannett, 
Esq., then and for many years afterwards Steward of 
Harvard University. In a letter to Rev. Dr. Gannett, 
dated February 15, 1845, Mr. Lawrence thus alludes 
to this interview : 

" My first interview witli you, thirty-eight years ago, Tvhen 
you Tvere led by the hand into the store ivhere I then was, in 
Cornhill, by that friend (who was afterwards my wife), uncon- 
scious of my being within thirty miles, after a four years' separa- 
tion, connects you in my thoughts with her, her children and 
grandchildi'en, in a way that no one can appreciate who has not 
had the experience." 

Enclosed in this letter was a faded paper, on which 
were written several verses of poetry, with the follow- 
ing explanation : 

" Only think of youi' sainted mother wi-iting this little scrap 
thirty-eight years ago, when on her death-bed, for her young 
friend, then on a visit to her, to teach to you, who could not 



46 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

read ; and this scrap, written ujMn a blank term-1)ill without 
premeditation, being preserved by that friend while she lived, 
and, after her death, by her daughter while she lived, and, after 
her death, being restored to me as the rightful disposer of it ; and 
my happening, within four days after, to meet you under such 
cu'cumstances as made it proper to show it to you." 

SIKS. GANNETI'S HYMN FOR HER LITTLE BOY IN 1S07. 

How can a child forgetful prove 

Of all that wakes the heart to love, 

And from the path of duty stray, 

To spend his time in sport and play ; 

Neglectftil of the blessing given, 

Which marks the path to peace and heaven ? 

! how can I, who daily share 

A mother's kind, assiduous care, 

Be idle, and ungrateful too ; 

Forsake the good, the bad pursue ; 

Neglectful of the blessings given, 

Which mark the path to peace and heaven ? 

O ! how can I such folly show, 

When faults indulged to vices grow, — 

Who know that idle days ne'er make 

Jlen that are useful, good, or great ? 

Dear mother, still be thou my guide, 

Nor suflfer me my faults to hide ; 

And may God his grace impart 

To fix my feeble, foolish heart, 

That I may wait the blessing given, 

Which marks the path to peace and heaven ! 

JIem. — Mrs. Cannett died soon after writing this on a blanli term-bill of Har- 
vard College, in 1807. — A. L., 1847. 

The marriage of Mr. Lawrence took place in Boston, 
on the 6th of June, 1811, three months after announc- 
ing his engagement to his sister. 



CHAPTER YI. 

BRAMBLE NEWS. — JUNIOR PARTNER GOES TO ENGL.VND. — 
LETTERS TO BROTHER. 

In 1849, Mr. Lawrence writes as follows : 

" On the 1st of January, 1814, I took my brother Abbott 
into paitnership on equal shares, putting fifty thousand dollars, 
that I had then earned, into the concern. Three days afterwards, 
the ' Bramble News ' came, by which the excessive high price of 
goods was knocked down. Our stock was then large, and had 
cost a high price. He was in great anguish, considering him- 
self a bankrupt for at least five thousand dollars. I cheered him 
by offering to cancel our copartnership indentures, give him up 
his note, and, at the end of the year, pay him five thousand 
dollars. He declined the offer, saying I should lose that, and 
more beside, and, as he had enlisted, would do the best he could. 
This was in character, and it was well for us both. He was 
c-dlcd off to do duty as a soldier, through most of the year. I 
took care of the business, and prepai'ed to retreat with my family 
into the country whenever the town seemed liable to fall into the 
hands of the British, who were very threatening in their demon- 
strations. We still continue mercantile business under the fii'st 
set of indentures, and under the same fii'm, merely adding ' & 
Co.,' as new partners have been admitted." 

In March, 1815, the junior partner embarked on 

47 



48 DIARY AND COERESPONDENCE. 

board the ship Milo, the first vessel which sailed from 
Boston for England after the proclamation of peace. 
On the eve of his departure, he received from his 
brother and senior partner a letter containing many 
good counsels for his future moral guidance, as well as 
instructions in relation to the course of business to be 
pursued. From that letter, dated March 11th, the 
following extracts are taken : 

" My dear Brother : I have tliought best, before you go 
abroad, to suggest a few bints for your benefit in your intercourse 
with the people among whom you are going. As a first and 
leading principle, let every transaction be of that pure and honest 
character that you would not be ashamed to have appear before 
the whole world as clearly as to yourself In addition to the 
advantages arising from an honest course of conduct with your 
fellow-men, there is the satisfaction of reflecting within yourself 
that you have endeavored to do your duty ; and, however greatly 
the Ijest may fall short of doing all they ought, they will l:ie sure 
not to do more than their principles enjoin. 

" It is, therefore, of the highest consequence that you should 
not only cultivate correct principles, but that you should place 
your standard of action so high as to require great vigilance in 
living up to it. 

" In regard to your business transactions, let everything be so 
registered in your books, that any person, without difficulty, can 
ixnderstand the whole of your concerns. You may be cut off in 
the midst of your pursuits, and it is of no small consequence that 
your temporal affairs should always be so arranged that you may 
be in readiness. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 49 

"If it is important that you should be vrell prepared in this 
point of view, how much more important is it that you should be 
prepared in that which relates to eternity ! 

" You are young, and the course of life seems open, and 
pleasant prospects greet your ardent hopes ; but you must 
remember that the race is not always to the swift, and that how- 
ever flattering may be your prospects, and however zealously you 
may seek pleasure, you can never find it except by cherishing 
pure principles, and practising right conduct. My heart is full 
on this subject, my dear brother, and it is the only one on which 
I feel the least anxiety. 

" While here, your conduct has been such as to meet my entu'e 
approbation ; but the scenes of another land may be more than 
your principles will stand against. I say, may 6e, because 
young men, of as fiiir promise as yourself, have been lost by 
giving a small latitude (umocent in the first instance) to their 
propensities. But I pray the Father of all mercies to have you 
in his keeping, and preserve you amid temptations. 

* * * * * * 

" I can only add my wish to have you write me frequently and 

particulai'ly, and that you will embrace every opportunity of 

gaining information. Your aflectionate brother, 

'•Alios Lawrence. 
"To Abbott Lawrexce." 

Again, on the 28th of the month, he writes to the 
same, after his departure : 

" I hope you will have arrived in England early in April ; and 
if so, you will be awaiting with anxious solicitude the arrival of 
the ' Gralen,' by which vessel you will receive letters from home, 
a word which brings more agreeable associations to the mind and 

7 



50 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

feelings of a young stranger in a foreign land than any other in 
our language. I have had many fears that you have had a rough 
passage, as the weather on the Friday following your departure 
was very boisterous, and continued so for a numlicr of days, and 
much of the time since has been uncomfortable. I trust, how- 
ever, tliat the same good Hand which supplies our daily wants has 
directed your course to the desired port. 

" With a just reliance on that Power, we need have no fear, 
though winds and waves should threaten our destruction. The 
interval between the time of bidding adieu and of actual depart- 
ure called into exercise those fine feelings which those only have 
who can prize friends, and on that account I was hai^py to see so 
much feeling in yourself 

" Since your departure nothing of a public nature has trans- 
pired of particular interest. All that there is of news or interest 
among us you will gather from the papers forwarded. 

" Those affairs which relate particularly to ourselves will be of 
as much interest as any ; I shall therefore detail our business 
operations. 

*^ •ff •^ T^ ^Tf *?? 

" My next and constant direction will be to keep a particular 
watch over yourself, that you do not fall into any habits of vice ; 
and, as a means of preserving yourself, I would most strictly 
enjoin that your Sabbaths be not spent in noise and I'iot, but that 
you attend the public worship of God. This you may think an 
unnecessary direction to you, who have always been in the habit 
of doing so. I hope it may be ; at any rate, it will do no harm. 

" That you may be blessed with health, and enjoy properly the 
blessings of life, is the wish of your ever affectionate brother, 

"A. L. 
" To Abbott Lawrence." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 61 

(to ABBOTT LAWRENCE.) 

" Boston, April 15th, 1815. 

"My dear Brother: By the favor of Heaven I trust ere 
this you have landed upon the soil from which sprang our fore- 
fathers. In the contemplation of that wonderful ' Isle ' on your 
first arrival, there must be a feeling bordering on devotion. The 
thousand new objects, which make such constant demand on your 
attention, will not, I hope, displace the transatlantic friends from 
the place they should occupy in your remembrance. Already do 
I begin to count the days when I may reasonably hear from you. 

" I pray you to let no opportunity pass without writing, as you 
will be enabled to appreciate the pleasure your letters will give 
by those which you receive from home. Since your departure, 
our father has been dangerously ill ; he seems fast recovering, but 
we much fear a relapse, when he would, in all probability, be 
immediately deprived of life, or his disease would so far weaken 
him as to terminate his usefulness. Our mother continues as 
comfortable as when you left us. Should you live to return, 
probably one or both our parents may not be here to welcome 
you ; we have particular reason for thankfulness that they have 
both been spared to us so long, and have been so useful in the 
education of their children. 

" All others of our connection have been in health since your 
departure, and a comfortable share of happiness seems to have 
been enjoyed by all. 

****** 

" Now for advice : you are placed in a particularly favorable 
situation, my dear brother, for improving yourself in the knowl- 
edge of such things as will hereafter be useful to you. Let no 
opportunity pass without making the most of it. There are 
necessarily many vacant hours in your business, which ought not 



52 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

to pass unemployed. I pretend not to suggest particular objects 
for your attention, but only the lialiit generally of active employ- 
ment, which, Tvhile making your time useful and agreeable to 
yourself, will be the best safeguard to your virtue. The Ameri- 
can character, I trust, is somewhat respected in England at this 
time, notwithstanding it was lately at so low an ebb ; and I would 
wish every American to endeavor to do something to improve it. 
Especially do I wish you, my dear A., who visit that country 
under circumstances so favorable, to do your part in establishing 
a character for your country as well as for yourself Thus prays 
your affectionate brother, A. L." 

To his wife, at Groton, Mr. Lawrence writes, under 
date of June 4, 1815 : 

" The Milo got in yesterday, and brought letters from 
Abbott, dated 4th April. He was then in Manchester, and 
enjoyed the best health. He wrote to our fother, which letter, I 
hope, will arrive at Groton by to-morrow's mail. I received from 
him merchandise, which I hope to get out of the ship and sell 
this week. I suspect there are few instances of a young man 
leaving this town, sending out goods, and having them sold within 
ninety days from the time of his departure. It is eighty-four 
days this morning since he left home." 

(to ABBOTT LAWRENCE.) 

" Boston, June 7, 1815. 
" Dear Brother : By the arrival of the Milo last Saturday, 
and packet on Monday, I received your several letters, giving an 
account of your proceedings. You are as fimous among your 
acquaintances here for the rapidity of your movements as Bona- 
parte. Mr. thinks that you leave Bonaparte entirely in the 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 53 

background. I really feel a little proud, my dear brother, of 
your conduct. Few instances of like despatch arc known. 

" The sensations you experienced in being greeted so heartily 
by the citizens of Liverpool, were not unlike those you felt on 
hearing the news of peace. I am happy to state to you that our 
father has so far recovered from his illness as to be able to attend 
to his farm. Our mother's health is much as when you left. 

" Your friends here feel a good deal of interest in your welfare, 
and read with deep interest your letters to them. The 02)portu- 
nity is peculiarly favorable for establishing a reputation as a close 
observer of men and manners, and for those improvements which 
travelling is reputed to give. 

" When writing to you sentences of advice, my heart feels all 
the tender sympathies and affections whicli bind me to my own 
children. This is my ajjology, if any be necessary, for so fre- 
quently touching on subjects for your moral improvement. 

"In any condition I can subscribe myself no other than your 
ever affectionate brother, A. L." 



CHAPTER VII. 

DEATH OF SISTER. — LETTERS. 

On the 19tli of August, 1815, Mr. Lawrence, in the 
following letter to his brother, announced the sudden 
death of a sister, who to youth and beauty united many 
valuable qualities of mind and character : 

" To you, who are at such a distance from home, and employed 

in the busy pursuits of life, the description of domestic woe will 

not come with such force as on us who were eye-witnesses to an 

event which we and all our friends shall not cease to deplore. 

We have attended this morning to the last sad ofiSce of affection 

to our loved sister S. Although for ourselves we mourn the loss 

of so much excellence, yet for her we rejoice that her race is so 

soon run. We are permitted to hope that she is now a saint in 

heaven, celebrating before the throne of her Father the praises of 

the redeemed. She met death in the enjoyment of that hope 

which is the peculiar consolation of the believer. This event, I 

know, my dear brother, is calculated to awaken all the tender 

recollections of home, and to call forth all your sympathy for 

the anguish of friends ; but it is also calculated to soften the heart, 

and to guide you in your own preparation for that great day of 

account. The admonition, I hope, may not be lost on any of us, 

and happy will it be for us if we use it aright." 

54 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 55 

(to the same.) 

" Boston, October 19, 1815. 
" Dear Abbott : By this vessel I have -written to you, but 
am always desirous of communicating the last intelligence from 
home, therefore I write ag-ain. The situation of our town, our 

JO ' 

country, our friends, and all the objects of endearment, continues 
tlie same as heretofore. We are, to be sure, getting into a 
religious controversy which does not promise to increase the stock 
of charity among us, but good will undoubtedly arise from it. 
The passions of some of our brethren are too much engaged, and 
it would seem from present appearances that consequences unfa- 
vorable to the cause of our Master may ensue ; but the wrath of 
man is frequently made subservient to the best purposes, and the 
good of mankind may in this case be greatly promoted by what at 
present seems a great evil. Men's passions are but poor guides to 
the discovery of truth, but they may sometimes elicit light by 
which others may get at the truth. 

" It does seem to me that a man need only use his common 
sense, and feel a willingness to be instructed in the reading of the 
Scriptures, and there is enough made plain to his understanding 
to direct him in the way he should go. 

" Others, however, think differently; but that should not be a 
reason with me for calling them hard names, especially if by their 
lives they show that they are followers of the same Master." 



On December 2cl, lie writes again : 



" I heard from you verbally on the 1st of October, in company 
with a platoon of New England Guards ; and hope the head of the 
corps allowed Lord Wellington the honor of an introduction, and 
of inspecting this choice corps, which once had the honor of pro- 



56 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

tecting the constitution and inilependence of the United States, 
when menaced by the ' proud sons of Britain.' This is a theme 
on which you may be allowed to dwell with some delight, although 
there are no recitals of hair-breadth escapes and hard-fought 
actions, when numbers bit the dust. Yet to you, who were active 
in performing duty, this should be a source of comfortable feeling, 
as the amount of human misery has not been increased by your 
means. Shakspeare's knight of sack thought ' the better part of 
valor was discretion,' but I do not believe the Guards would have 
confirmed this sentiment, had the opportunity offered for a trial. 
I am really glad to hear of you in Paris, and hope you will 
improve every moment of your time in acquu'ing information that 
will be agreeable and interesting ; and, more particularly, I hope 
you will have gone over the ground where the great events have 
happened that now allow Europe to repose in peace. How much 
should I delight in a few hours' intercourse with you ; but that 
must be deferred to another period, perhaps to a very distant 
period. 

"I feel very healthy and very happy ; my wife and children 
all enjoying health, and a good share of the bounties of Providence 
in various ways. Well you may be contented, you will say. 
What more is wanting ? Such is not always the lot of man 
possessing those blessings. There is often a voracious appetite 
for other and greater blessings. The desire for more splendor, 
the possession of more wealth, is coveted, without the disposition 
to use it as an accountable creature : and too late the poor man 
finds that all his toil for these earthly objects of his worship foils 
in satisfying or giving a good degree of content. I, therefore, 
have reason for thankfulness that I am blessed with a disposition 
to appreciate tolerably the temporal blessings I enjoy. To the 
Father of all mercies I am indebted for this and every other good 



DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 57 

tliin<T ; even for the increased affection ■with -which I think of you. 
That he may bless and keep you, dear Abbott, is the prayer of 
your brother, A. L.' 

On June 6tli, 1817, a few days after tlie birth of a 
daughter, he writes to a friend : 

" I am the richest man, I suppose, that there is on this side of 
the water, and the richest because I am the happiest. On the 23d 
ult. I was blessed by the birth of a fine little daughter ; this, as 
you may well suppose, has filled our hearts with joy. S. is 
very comfortable, and is not less gratified than I am. I wish you 
were a married man, and then (if you had a good wife) you 
would know how to appreciate the pleasures of a parent. I have 
lately thought more than ever of the propriety of your settling 
soon. It is extremely dangerous to defer making a connection 
until a late period ; for a man is in more and more danger of not 
forming one the longer he puts it off; and any man who does not 
form this connection grossly miscalculates in the use of the means 
which God has given him to supply himself with pleasures in the 
downhill journey of life. 

" He is also foolish to allow himself to be cheated in this con- 
nection by the prospect of a few present advantages, to the 
exclusion of the more permanent ones. Every man's best pleas- 
ures should he at home ; for there is the sphere for the exercise 
of his best virtues ; and he should be particularly careful, in the 
selection of a partner, to get one who will jeopardize neither. On 
this sulject, you know, I am always eloquent. But, at this time, 
there is reason for my being so, as it is the anniversary of my 
wedding day. 

" S. has put her eye on a I'ib for you. The said person, you 



68 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

must know, is of a comely appearance (not beautiful), is rather 

taller than , has a good constitution, is perfectly acquainted 

■with domestic economy, and has all the most desirable of the 
fashionable accomplishments, such as music, painting &c. ; and my 
only objection to her is, as far as I have observed her, that she 
has a few thousand dollars in cash. This, however, might be 
I'emedied ; for, after furnishing a house, the balance might be 
given to her near connections, or to some public institution. I 
will give no further description, but will only say that her 
connections are such as you would find pleasure in. No more 
on this subject. The subject of principal interest among us now 
is the new tariff of duties." * * * * 



CHAPTER VIII. 

DOiMESTIC ILUJITS.— ILLNESS AND DEATH OF WIFE. 

In searching for records of the business at this period, 
the first copied letters are found in a vokime com- 
mencing with the date of March 10, 1815 ; since which 
period the correspondence, contained in many volumes, 
is complete. On the first page of this volume is a 
letter from the senior partner somewhat characteristic. 
It relates to a bill of exchange for two thousand rupees, 
which he knew was a doubtful one, but which he had 
taken to relieve the pressing necessities of a young 
Englishwoman from Calcutta, with a worthless husl and. 
He writes to his friends in that city : 

"We have been so particular as to send a clerk to her Tvith the 
money, that we might be sure of her receiving it. Previous to 
her receiving the money from us, we were told her children were 
ragged, barefooted, and hungry ; afterwards we knew they were 
kept comfortably clad." 

In tracing the course of business as revealed by the 
perusal of the correspondence, it is evident that Mr. 
Lawrence's time and attention must have been en- 

69 



60 DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

grossed hj the increasing importance and magnitude 
of the mercantile operations of his firm. The cares 
and perplexities of the day did not, however, unfit 
him for the quiet enjoyments of domestic life ; and, 
however great and urgent were the calls upon his 
time and his thoughts from abroad, home, with its 
endearments, occupied the first place in his afTections. 
So much did its interests transcend all others in his feel- 
ings, that he speaks in after life of having ' ' watched 
night and day without leaving, for a fortnight," a sick 
child ; and then being rewarded for his care by having 
it restored to him after the diligent application of 
remedies, when the physician and friends had given up 
all hope of recovery. 

With such affections and sources of happiness, con- 
nected with prosperity in his affairs, it may well be 
supposed that the current of life flowed smoothly on. 
His evenings were passed at home ; and urgent must 
have been the call which could draw him from his fire- 
side, where the social chat or friendly book banished 
the cares of the day. 

A gentleman, now a prominent merchant in New 
York, who was a clerk with Mr. Lawrence at this time, 
says of him : 

" When the business season was over, he would sit down with 
me, and converse fi-eely and familiarly, and would have something 
interesting and useful to say. I used to enjoy these sittings ; 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 61 

and, -while I always feared to do anything, or leave anything 
undone, which would displease him, I at the same time had a very 
high regard, and I may say love, for him, such as I never felt for 
any other man beside my own father. He had a remarkable faculty 
of brino-ino- the sterling money into our currency, with any 
advance, by a calculation in his mind, and would give the result 
with great accuracy in one quarter of the time which it took me 
to do it by figures. I used to try hard to acquire this faculty, 
but could not, and never saw any other person who possessed it to 
the degree he did. His mind was remarkably vigorous and 
accurate; and consequently his business was transacted in a 
prompt and correct manner. Nothing was left undone until to- 
morrow which could be done to-day. He was master of and con- 
trolled his business, instead of allowing his business to master and 
control him. When I took charge of the books, they were kept 
by single entry ; and Mr. Lawrence daily examined every entry 
to detect errors. He was dissatisfied with this loose way of keep- 
ing the books; and, at his request, I studied book-keeping by 
double entry with Mr. Gershom Cobb, who had just introduced 
the new and shorter method of double entry. I then transferred 
the accounts into a new set of books on this plan, and well 
remember his anxiety during the process, and his expression of 
delight when the work was completed, and I had succeeded in 
making the first trial-balance come out right. This was the first 
set of books opened in Boston on the new system. While Mr. 
Lawrence required all to fulfil their engagements fully and 
promptly, so long as they were able to do so, he was lenient to 
those who were unfortunate, and always ready to compromise 
demands against such. No case occurred, while I was with him, 
in which I thought he dealt harshly with a debtor who had failed 
in business." 



62 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

The year 1818 opened with cheering prospects ; but 
a cloud was gathering which was destined to cast a 
shadow over all these pleasant hopes. During the 
spring, Mrs. Lawrence was troubled Avith a cough, 
which became so obstinate at the beginning of the 
summer, that she was persuaded to remain at Groton 
for a short period, in order to try the benefit of country 
air. Mr. Lawrence writes to her, July 16 : 

"I am forcibly reminded of the blessings of wife, children, and 
friends, by the privation of wife and children ; and, when at home, 
I really feel homesick and lonesome. Here I am, in two great 
rooms, almost alone ; so you must prepare at a minute's notice to 
follow your husband." 

She remained in the country for sevei'al weeks, and 
was summoned suddenly home by the alarming illness 
of her husband ; the result of which, for a time, seemed 
very doubtful. After a season of intense anxiety and 
unremitted watchings at his bedside, Mrs. Lawrence 
was seized during the night with a hemorrhage from 
the lungs. This symptom, which so much alarmed her 
friends, was hailed by herself with joy, as she now had 
no wish to outlive her husband, whose life she had 
despaired of. Mr. Lawrence's recovery was slow ; 
and, as soon as it was deemed prudent, he was sent to 
Groton to recruit his strength. He writes, under date 
of November 5, 1818 : 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 63 

" Dearest Sarah : We have heard of the fire on Tuesday 
evening, and hojDe the alarm has not impaired your health. I 
enjoy myself here as much as it is possible for any one to do 
under like ckcumstances. The idea of leaving the objects most 
dear to me, a -wlk and child sick, is too great a drawback upon 
my happiness to allow me as much quiet as is desirable. Yet I 
have great reason for thankfulness that I am at this time able to 
enjoy the society of friends, and that you are so comfortable as to 
give good reason to hope that the next season ^yill restore to you a 
tolerable share of health." 

Mrs. Lawrence ■writes, in reply to liis letter : 

" I have just received youre, and feci better to hear that you 
are so well. I hope that you will leave no means unimproved to 
regain health. Do not allow unreasonable fears on my account. 
I am as well as I was the week past ; but we are uneasy mortals, 
and I do not improve as I could wish. You know me : therefore 
make all allowances. It is a cloudy day." 

It soon became evident to all that tlie disease under 
which Mrs. Lawrence labored was a settled consump- 
tion, and that there could be little hope of recovery. 
To her mother Mr. Lawrence writes, Dec. 7 : 

" Since I last wrote to you, there has been no material change 
in Sarah's situation. She suffers less pain, and has more cheer- 
ful spu'its than when you were here. She is very well apprised 
of her situation, and complains that those who are admitted to see 
her look so sorrowful, that it has a painful effect upon her feel- 



64 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

ings. She is desirous of being kept cheerful and happy; and, 
as far as I am capable of making her so, I do it. Yet I am a 
poor hand to attempt doing, with my feeble health, what is so 
foreign to my feelings. Although she is much more comfortable 
than she was, I cannot flatter myself that she is any better. She 
still retains a faint hope that she may be so ; yet it is but a faint 
one. It takes much from my distress to see her so calm, and so 
resigned to the will of the Almighty. Although her attachments to 
life are as strong and as numerous as are the attachments of most, 
I believe the principle of resignation is stronger. She is a genuine 
disciple of Christ ; and, if my children walk in her steps, they 
will all be gathered among the blest, and sing the song of the 
redeemed. Should it be the will of God that we be separated for 
a season, there is an animation in the hope that we shall meet 
again, purified from the grossness of the flesh, and never to be 
parted. ' God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb.' I shall have, 
therefore, no more put upon me than I am able to bear ; yet I 
know not how to bring my mind to part with so excellent a friend, 
and so good a counsellor." 

Oil Jan. 13, 1819, lie writes : 

" Sarah has continued to sink since you left, and is now 
apparently very easy, and very near the termination of her earthly 
career. She may continue two or three days ; but the prospect 
is, that she will not open her eyes upon another morning. She 
sufiers nothing, and it is, therefore, no trial to our feelings, com- 
pared with what it would be did she suffer. Her mind is a little 
clouded at times, but, in the main, quite clear. We shall give 
you early information of the event which blasts our dearest earthly 
hopes. But God reigns : let ns rejoice." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 65 

A few hours before her death, she called for a paper 
(now in possession of the writer), and, with a pencil, 
traced, in a trembling hand, some directions respecting 
small memorials to friends, and then added : 

" Feeling that I must soon depart from this, I trust, to a better 
world, I resign very dear friends to God, who has done so much 
for me. I am in ecstacies of love. How can I praise him 
enough ! To my friends I give these tokens of remembrance." 

On the 14th of January, 1819, Mr. Lawrence closed 
the eyes of this most beloved of all his earthly objects, 
and immediately relapsed into a state of melancholy and 
gloom, which was, no doubt, greatly promoted by the 
peculiar state of health and physical debility under 
which he had labored since his last illness. 

A valued friend writes, a few days after the death of 
Mrs. L. : 

" It was my privilege to witness the closing scene ; to behold 

faith triumphing over sense, and raising the soul above this world 

of shadows. It was a spectacle to convince the sceptic, and to 

animate and confirm the Christian. About a week before her 

death, her increasing weakness taught her the fallacy of all hope 

of recovery. From this time, it was the business of every 

moment to prepare herself and her friends for the change which 

awaited her. Serene, and even cheerful, she could look forward 

without apprehension into the dark valley, and beyond it she 

beheld those bright regions where she should meet her Saviour, 

through whose mediation she had the blessed assurance that her 
9 



66 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

sins were i3ardoncd, and her inheritance secure. God permitted a 
cloud to obscure the bright j^rospect ; it was but for a moment, 
and the sun In-ol^e forth with redoubled splendor. On the last 
night of her life, she appeared to suffer extremely, though, when 
asked, she constantly replied in the negative. She repeated, 
in a feeble voice, detached portions of hymns of which she had 
been fond. Towards morning, as she appeared nearly insensible, 
Mrs. R. was persuaded to lie down and rest. Shortly after, 
Sarah roused herself, and said to L., 'I am going ; call my 
mother.' Mrs. R. was at her bedside immediately, and asked her 
if she was sensible that she was leaving the world. She answered 
'Yes,' and expressed her resignation. 

"Mrs. R. then repeated a few lines of Pope's Dying Christian, 
and the expiring saint, in broken accents, followed her. On her 
mother's saying 'the world recedes,' she added, 'It disappears, 
— heaven opens.' These were the last words I heard her utter. 
She then became insensible, and in about ten minutes expired. 
Not a sound interrupted the sacred silence ; the tear of affection 
was shed, but no lamentation was heard. The eye of affection 
dwelt on the fiided form, but faith pointed to those regions where 
the blessed spirit was admitted to those joys which eye has not 
seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man 
to conceive. Mr. L. is wonderfully supported. He feels as a man 
and a Christian." 

Upon this letter Mr. Lawrence has endorsed the 
following memorandum : 

"I saw this letter to-day for the first time. My son-in-law 
handed to me yesterday a number of memorials of my beloved 
daughter, who was called home on the second day of December 



DIARY AND COREESPONDENCE. 67 

last, when only a few months younger than her mother, whose 
death is so beautifully described within. The description brought 
the scene back to my mind with a force that unmanned me for a 
time, and leads me to pray most earnestly and humbly that I may 
be found worthy to join them thi'ough the beloved, when my 
summons comes. A. L. 

" February 5th, 1845." 



CHAPTER IX. 

JOURNEYS. — LETTERS. —JOUENET TO NEW YORK. 

The sense of loss and the state of depression under 
which Mr. Lawrence labored were so great, that he 
was advised to try a change of scene ; and accord- 
ingly, after having placed Ms three children with kind 
relatives in the country, he left Boston, on a tour, 
wliich lasted some weeks, through the Middle States 
and Virginia. He wrote many letters during this 
time, describing the scenes which he daily witnessed, 
and particularly the pleasure which he experienced in 
Virginia from the unbounded hospitality with which 
he was welcomed by those with whom he had become 
acquainted. He also Adsited Washington, and listened 
to some important debates on the admission of Missouri 
into the Union, which produced a strong and lasting 
influence upon his mind respecting the great questions 
then discussed. 

In a letter to his brother from the latter city, dated 
Feb. 25th, after describing a visit to the tomb of 
Washington at Mount Vernon, he writes : 

" Friend Webster has taken a stand here which no man can 

68 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 69 

surpass ; very few are able to keep even Tvith him. He has made 
a wonderful argument for the United States Bank. If he does 
not stand confessedly first among the advocates here, he does not 
stand second. Tell brother L. of this ; it -will do him good." 

On. March 30, he writes to his sister, after his return 
to Boston : 

" I am once more near the remains of her who was lately more 
dear to me than any other earthly object, after an absence of two 
months ; my health much improved, — I may say restored ; my 
heai-t filled with gratitude to the Author of all good for so many 
and rich blessings, so rapidly succeeding such severe privations 
and trials." 

A few days later, he writes to his sister-in-law : 

" Sunday evening, April 4, 1819. 
" Dear S. : It is proper that I should explain to you why my 
feelings got so much the better of my reason at the celebration of 
the sacrament this morning. The last time I attended that ser- 
vice was with my beloved S., after an absence on her part of 
fifteen months, during which period you well know what passed 
in both our minds. On this occasion our minds and feelings were 
elevated with devotion, and (as I trust) suitably affected with 
gratitude to the Father of mercies for once more permitting her 
to celebrate with her husband this memorial of our Saviour. 
Then, indeed, were our hearts gladdened by the cheering prospect 
of her returning health and continued life. The consideration 
that I had since this period been almost within the purlieu of the 
grave, that my beloved Sarah had fallen a sacrifice to her care 
and anxiety for me, and that I was for the first time at the table 



70 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

of the Lord -without her, with a view to celeljrate the most solemn 
service of our religion, overwhelmed me as a torrent^ and my 
feelings were too powerful to be restrained ; I was almost suf- 
focated in the attempt. 

" Comment is unnecessary. God grant us a suitable improve- 
ment of the scene ! 

" Your affectionate brother, A. L." 

On April 6, he writes to a friend in England : 

" Since I last wrote, family misfortunes, of which you have 
from time to time been apprised, have pressed heavily upon me. 
I am now in tolerable health, and hope soon to see it enth-ely 
confirmed." 

After a visit to his parents, at Groton, he says, on 
April 9 : 

" I arrived at home last Saturday night, at eleven o'clock, after 
rather an uncomfortable ride. However, I had the satisfaction on 
Monday of exercising my right of suffi-age, which, had I not 
done, I should have felt unpleasantly. I wrote to M., on Tues- 
day, under a depression of spirits altogether greater than I have 
before felt. The effect of hope upon my feelings, before I saw 
the little ones, was very animating ; since that time (although I 
found them all I could desire), the stimulus is gone, and I have 
been very wi-etched. The principles I cherish will now have 
their proper effect, although nature must fii'st find its level. Po 
not imagine I feel severely depressed all the time ; although I 
certainly have much less of animal spirits than I had before my 
return, I do not feel positively unhappy. Under all the circum- 
stances, it is thought best for me to journey. Hitherto, I have 



DIAEY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 71 

experienced the kind protection of an almighty Friend ; it ■ffill 
not hereafter he withheld. Commending all dear friends and 
myself to Him, I remain your truly affectionate brother, 

"A. L." 

To another sister lie writes five clays afterwards, 
before commencing a second journey : 

" In a few moments I am oif. I gladly seize the leisure they 
furnish me, to tell you I feel well, and have no doubt of having 
such a flow of spirits as will make my journey pleasant. At any 
rate, I start with this determination. You know not, dear E., 
the delight I feel in contemplating the situation of my little ones ; 
this (if no higher principle) should be sufficient to do away all 
repining and vain regrets for the loss of an object so dear as was 
their mother. In short, her own wishes should operate very 
strongly against these I'egrets. I hope to be forgiven the offence, 
if such it be ; and to make such improvement of it as will sub- 
serve the purposes of my heavenly Father, who doth not willingly 
afflict the children of men, but for their improvement. My 
prayer to God is, that the affliction may not be lost upon me ; 
but that it may have the effect of making me estimate more 
justly the value of all temporal objects, and, by thus softening 
the heart, open it to the kind influences of our holy religion, and 
produce that love and charity well pleasing to our Father. I 
have no object in view further south than Baltimore ; from thence 
I shall go across the AUeghanies, or journey through the interior 
to the northern border of this country. At Baltimore I remain 
a few days ; my business there is as delegate from Brattle-street 
Church, in the settlement of a minister, a young gentleman 
named Sparks, from Connecticut." 



72 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

(to ABBOTT LAWUENCE.) 

" Philadelphia, April 26, 1819. 

" Dear Brother : When I see how people in other places 
are doing business, I feel that we have reason to thank God that 
■we are not obliged to do as they do, but are following that regular 
and profitably safe business that allows us to sleep well o' nights, 
and eat the bread of industry and quietness. The more I see of 
the changes produced by violent speculation, the more satisfied I 
am that our maxims are the only true ones for a life together. 
Different maxims may prove successful for a part of life, but 
will frequently produce disastrous results just at the time we 
stand most in need; that is, when life is on the wane, and a 
family is growing around us. 

" Two young brokers in • have played a dashing game. 

They have taken nearly one hundi-ed thousand dollars from the 
bank, without the consent of the directors. A clerk discounted 
for them. They have lost it by United States Bank speculations. 

" Look after clerks well, if you wish to keep them honest. 
Too good a reputation sometimes tempts men to sin, upon the 
strength of their reputation. 

" As to business, it must be bad enough ; that is nothing new ; 
but patience and perseverance will overcome all obstacles, and, 
notwithstanding all things look so dark, I look for a good year's 
work. 

" You must remember that I have done nothing yet, and I 
have never failed of accomplishing more than my expectations ; 
so I say again, we will make a good year's work of it yet, by the 
blessing of Heaven." 

From Lancaster, Penn., April 29, he writes to Ms 
sister : 



DIAKY AND COEKESPONDENCE. 73 



" My feelings are usually buoyant, except occasionally -when 
imagination wanclers back to departed days ; then conies over me 
a shadow, ■wdiich, by its frequency, I am now enabled to dispel 
without violence, and even to dwell upon without injury." 

(to ABBOTT LAWRENCE.) 

" Baltimore, May 25, 1819. 

" Dear Beother : I arrived in this city this morning, in the 
steamboat, from Norfolk, and have found a number of letters 
from you and brother W. From the present aspect of affairs in 
this city, I fear that I shall make but a short stay. At no 
period has the face of aflairs been more trying to the feelings of 
the citizens. Baltimore has never seen but two days which will 
compare with last Friday : one of those was the mob day, the 
other was the day of the attack by the British. 

" Nearly one half the city, embracing its most active and 
hitherto wealthiest citizens, have stopped or must stop payment. 
Confidence is prostrated, capital vanished. 

" I am rejoiced to hear of your easy situation, and hope it 
may continue. Avoid responsibilities, and all is well with us. 
I am in no wise avaricious, and of course care not whether we 
make five thousand dollars more or less, if we risk twenty 
thousand to do it. 

" I have a high eulogium to pay the Virginians, which I must 
reserve for another letter ; as also an account of my travels from 
Petersburg." 

In a letter to a friend, dated at Baltimore, lie says : 

"Since I have been here, I have been constantly occupied ; 
and, although the heavy cloud which overhangs this city is dis- 
charging its contents upon their heads, they bear it well, resolv- 
10 



74 DIARY AND COEEESPONDENCE. 

ing that, if tliey are poor, thej will not be unsocial, nor uncivil ; 
and on this principle they meet in little groups, without much 
style or ceremony, and pass sensible and sociable evenings 
together. 

" I have really become very much interested in some of the 
people here. 

" And now my advice to you is, get married, and have no fear 
about the expense being too great. If you have two children 
born unto you within a twelve-month, you will be the richer man 
for it. Nothing sharpens a man's wits, in earning property and 
using it, better than to see a little flock growing up around him. 
So I say again, man, fear not." 

On his return, it seems to have been his object to 
interest himself as much as possible in business, and 
thus endeavor to divert his mind from those painful 
associations, which, in spite of all his efforts, would 
sometimes obtain the mastery. In the mean time, he 
had given up his house, and resided in the family of 
his brother Abbott ; where he was welcomed as an. 
inmate, and treated with so much sympathy and con- 
siderate kindness, that his mind, after a time, recov- 
ered its tone : his health was restored, and he was 
once more enabled to give his full powers to the grow- 
ing interests of his firm. For the few succeeding 
years, he was engaged in the usual routine of mercan- 
tile affairs, and has left but few memorials or letters, 
except those relating to his business. In the winter 
of 1820, he made a visit to New York, which he 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 75 

describes in bis diary under date of February 15, 
1846: 

" Yesterday was one of the most lovely winter days. To-day 
the snow drives into all the cracks and corners, it being a bois- 
terous easterly snow-storm, which recalls to my mind a similar 
one, which I shall never forget, in February, 1S20. 

" I went to New York during that month, for the New Eng- 
land Bank, with about one hundred thousand dollars in foreign 
gold, the value of which by law at the mint was soon to be 
reduced from eighty-seven to eighty-five cents per pennyweight, 
or about that. I also had orders to buy bills with it, at the best 
rate I could. Accordingly I invested it, and had to analyze the 
standing of many who oifered bills, as drawers or endorsers. 

" Some of the bills were protested for non-acceptance, and 
were returned at once, and damages claimed. This was new 
law in New York, and resisted; but the merchants were con- 
vinced by suits, and paid the twenty per cent, damages. The law 
of damage was altered soon after. 

" On my return, I took a packet for Providence, and came at 
the rate of ten knots an hour for the first seven hours of the 
night. I was alarmed by a crash, which seemed to me to be 
breaking in the side of the ship, within a few inches of my head. 
I ran upon deck, and it was a scene to be remembered. Beside 
the crew, on board were the officers of a wrecked vessel from 
Portsmouth, N. H., and some other old ship-masters, all at work, 
and giving directions to a coaster, which had run foul of us, and 
had lost its way. By favor and labor, we were saved from being 
wrecked ; but were obliged to land at some fifteen miles from 
Providence, and get there as we could through the snow. I 
arrived there almost dead with headache and sickness. Madam 



76 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

Dexter and her daughter left the day before, and reached home in 
perfect safety before the storm. Such are the scenes of human 
life ! Here am I enjoying my own fireside, while all who were 
then active with me in the scenes thus recalled are called to their 
account, excepting Philip Hone, M. Van Schaick, N. Goddard, 
Chancellor Kent, and his son-in-law, Isaac Hone." 



CHAPTER X. 

MARRIAGE. — ELECTED TO LEGISLATURE. — ENGAGES IN INUNDFAC- 
TURES. — REFLECTIONS. 

In April, 1821, IMr. Lawrence was married to Mrs. 
Nancy Ellis, widow of the late Judge Ellis, of Clare- 
mont, N. H., and daughter of Eobert Means, Esq., of 
Amherst, in the same State. His children, who had 
been placed with his parents and sisters at Groton, 
were brought home ; and he was now permitted again 
to unite his family under his own roof, and to enjoy 
once more those domestic comforts so congenial to 
his taste, and which each revolving year seemed to 
increase until the close of his life. 

Mr. Lawrence was elected a representative from 
Boston to the Legislature for the session of 1821 and 
22 ; and this was the only occasion on which he ever 
served in a public legislative body. Although deeply 
engaged in Ms own commercial pursuits, he was con- 
stantly at his post in the House of Representatives ; 
and attended faithfully to the duties of his office, 
although with much sacrifice to his own personal 
interests. Very little is found among his memoranda 
relating to this new experience. As a member of a 

77 



78 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

committee of the Legislature having in charge the 
subject of the erection of wooden buiklings in Boston, 
he seems to have had a correspondence with the late 
Hon. John Lowell, who took strong ground before the 
committee against the multiplication of buildings of 
this material, and backed his arguments with some 
very characteristic statements and observations. On 
one of these letters Mv. Lawrence made a memoran- 
dum, dated March, 1845, as follows : 

" The Bosto7i Rebel was a true man, such as we need more of 
in these latter days. The open-mouthed lovers of the dear peo- 
ple are self-seekers in most instances. Beware of such." 

The following extract is taken from a letter, dated 
January 4th, 1822, addressed by Mr. Lawrence to 
Hon. Frederic Wolcott, of Connecticut, respecting a 
son who was about to be placed in his counting-room, 
and who, in after years, became his partner in business : 

" H. will have much leisure in the evening, which, if he 
choose, may be profitably devoted to study ; and we hope he will 
lay out such a course for himself, as to leave no poi'tion of his 
time unappropriated. It is on account of so much leisure, that 
so many fine youths are ruined in this town. The habit of 
industry once well fixed, the danger is over. 

" Will it not be well for him to furnish you, at stated periods, 
an exact account of his expenditures ? The habit of keeping 
such an account will be serviceable, and, if he is prudent, the 
satisfaction will be great, ten years hence, in looking back and 
observing the process by which his character has been formed. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 79 

If he does as well as he is capable, we have no doubt of your 
experiencing the reward of your care over him." 

For the several following years, Mr. Lawrence was 
deeply engaged in business ; and the firm of which he 
was the senior partner became interested in domestic 
manufactures, which, with the aid of other capitalists, 
afterwards grew into so much importance, until now it 
has become one of the great interests of the country. 
Apart from all selfish motives, he early became one of 
the strongest advocates for the protection of American 
industry, believing that the first duty of a government 
is to advance the interests of its own citizens, when it 
can be accomplished with justice to others ; and in 
opposition to the system of free trade, which, however 
plausible in theory, he considered prejudicial to the 
true interests of our own people. He was conscientious 
in these opinions ; and, in their support, corresponded 
largely with some of the leading statesmen at Washing- 
ton, as well as with prominent opponents at the vSouth, 
who combatted his opinions while they respected the 
motives by which he was actuated. He testea his 
sincerity, by embarking a large pi-oportion of his prop- 
erty in these enterprises ; and, to the last, entertained 
the belief that the climate, the soil, and the habits of 
the people, rendered domestic manufactures one of 
the permanent and abiding interests of New England. 
During seasons of high political excitement and sec 
tional strife, he wrote to various friends at the South, 



80 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

urging them to discard all local prejudices, and to enter 
with the North into manly competition in all those 
branches of domestic industry which would tend, not 
only to enrich, but also to improve the moral and 
intellectual character of their people. He watched, 
with increasing interest, the progress of Lowell and 
other manufacturing districts, and was ever ready to 
lend a helping hand to any scheme which tended to 
advance their welfare. Churches, hospitals, libraries, 
in these growing communities, had in him a warm and 
earnest advocate ; and it was always with honest pride 
that he pointed out to the intelligent foreigner the 
moral condition of the operative here, when compared 
with that of the same class in other countries. 

On the 1st of January, in each year, Mr. Lawrence 
was in the habit of noting down, in a small memo- 
randum-book, an accurate account of all his property, 
in order that he might have a clear view of his own 
affairs, and also as a guide to his executors in the set- 
tlement of his estate, in case of his death. This annual 
statement commences in 1814, and, with the exception 
of 1819, when he was in great affliction on account of 
the death of his wife, is continued every year until that 
of his own death, in 1852. In this little volume the 
following memorandum occurs, dated January 1, 182G : 

" I have been extensively engaged in business during tlie last 
two years, and have added much to my worldly possessions ; but 
have come to the same conclusions in regard to them that I did in 



DIARt AND CORRESPONDENCE. 81 

1818. I feel distressed in mind that the resolutions then made 
have not been more effectual in keeping me from this overen- 
gagedness in business. I now find myself so engrossed with its 
cares, as to occupy my thoughts, waking or sleeping, to a degree 
entirely disproportioned to its importance. The quiet and com- 
fort of home are broken in upon by the anxiety arising from the 
losses and mischances of a business so extensive as ours ; and, 
above all, that communion which ought ever to be kept free 
between man and his Maker is interrupted by the incessant calls 
of the multifarious pursuits of our establishment." 

After noting down several rules for curtailing his 
afiairs, lie continues : 

" Property acquired at such sacrifices as I have been obliged 
to make the past year costs more than it 's worth ; and the 
anxiety in protecting it is the extreme of folly." 

1st of January, 1827. — "The principles of busuiess laid 
down a year ago have been very nearly practised upon. Our 
responsibilities and anxieties have greatly diminished, as also have 
the accustomed profits of business ; but there is sufficient remain- 
ing for the reward of our labor to impose on us increased respons- 
ibilities and duties, as agents who must at last render an account. 

God grant that mine be found correct ! " 
11 



CHAPTER XL 

EEFLECTIONS. — BUNKER HILL MONUMENT. — LETTERS. 

1st of Januanj, 1S28. — After an account of his 
affairs, he remarks : 

" The amount of property is great for a young man under 
forty-two years of age, who came to this town when ho was 
twenty-one years old with no other possessions tlian a common 
country education, a sincere love for his own family, and habits 
of industry, economy, and sobriety. Under God, it is these 
same self-denying habits, and a desii'e I always had to please, so 
far as I could without sinful compliance, that I can now look 
back upon and see as the true ground of my success. I have 
many things to reproach myself with ; but among them is not 
idlmg away my time, or spending money for such things as are 
improper. My property imposes upon me many duties, which 
can only be known to my Maker. May a sense of these duties 
be constantly impressed upon my mind ; and, by a constant dis- 
charge of them, God grant me the happiness at last of hearing 
the joyful sound, 'Well done, good and faithful servant, enter 
thou into the joy of thy Lord ! ' Amen. Amen." 

Previous to this date, but few private letters written 
by Mr. Lawrence were preserved. From that time, 
however, many volumes have been collected, a greater 

82 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 83 

part of tlieni addressed to his children. Out of a very 
large correspondence Tivitli them and with friends, such 
selections will be made as are thought most interesting, 
and most worthy to be preserved by his family and 
their descendants. The nature of this correspondence 
is such, involving many personal matters of transient 
interest, that often scraps of letters only can be given ; 
and, although it will be the aim of the editor to give 
an outline of the life of the author of these letters, it 
will be his object to allow him to speak for himself, and 
to reveal his own sentiments and character, rather than 
to folloAV out, from year to year, the details of his 
personal history. This correspondence commences with 
a series of letter's extending through several years, and 
addressed to his eldest son, who was, during that time, 
at school in France and Spain. 

" Boston, Jvovemljer 11, 1828. 
" I trust that you will have liad favoring gales and a pleasant 
passage, and ivill be safely landed at Havre within twenty days 
after sailing. You will see things so different from what you 
have been accustomed to, that you may think the French are far 
before or behind us in the arts of life, and formation of society. 
But you must remember that what is best for one peojjle may be 
the worst for another ; and that it is true wisdom to study the 
character of the people among whom you are, before adopting 
their manners, habits, or feelings, and carrying them to another 
people. I wish to see you, as long as you live, a well-bred, 
upright Yankee. Brother Jonathan should never forget his 
self-respect, nor should he be impertinent in claiming more for 



84 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

his country or himself than is clue ; but on no account should he 
speak ungraciously of his country or its friends abroad, ■whatever 
may be said by others. Lafayette in France is not what he is 
here ; and, whatever may be said of him there, he is an ardent 
friend of the United States ; and I vrill venture to say, if you 
introduce yourself to him as a grandson of one of his old Yankee 
officers, he will treat you with the kindness of a father. You 
must visit La Grange, and G. will go with you. He will not 
recollect your grandfather, or any of us. But tell him that 
your father and three uncles were introduced to him here in the 
State House ; that they are much engaged in forwarding the 
Bunker Hill Monument ; and, if ever he return to this country, 
it will be the pride of your flither to lead him to the top of it." 

Among Mv. Lawrence's papers, this is the first 
allusion to the Bunker Hill Monument, in the erection 
of which he afterwards took so prominent a part, and 
to which he most liberally contributed both time and 
money. From early associations, perhaps from the 
accounts received from his father, who was present 
during the battle, his mind became strongly interested 
in the project of erecting a monument, and particularly 
in that of reserAdng the whole battle-ground for the use 
of the public forever. He had been chosen one of the 
Building Committee of the Board of Directors in Octo- 
ber, 1825, in company with Dr. Jolm C. Warren, 
General H. A. S. Dearborn, George Blake, and Wil- 
liam Sullivan. From this time until the completion of 
the monument, the object occupied a prominent place 
in his thoughts ; and allusion to his efforts in its behalf 



DIARY AND COKRESPONDENCE. 85 

during the succeeding years will, from time to time, t»e 
introduced. 

On December 13, 1828, he thus alludes to the death 
of an invalid daughter six years of age : 

" She was taken with luug fever on the 4th, and died, after 
much suifering and distress, on the 8th. Nothing seemed to 
relieve her at all ; and I was thankful when the dear child 
ceased to suflFer, and ivas taken to the bosom of her Saviour, 
where sickness and suifering will no more reach her, and the 
imperfections of her earthly tenement will be corrected, and her 
mind and sjjirit will be allowed to expand and grow to their full 
stature in Christ. In his hands I most joyfully leave her, hoping 
that I may rejoin her with the other chikhen whom it has pleased 
God to give me." 

(to nis SON.) 

" December 29. 

" My thoughts are often led to contemplate the condition of 
my children in every variety of situation, more especially in 
sickness, since the death of dear M. Although I do not allow 
myself to indulge in melancholy or fearful forebodings, I cannot 
but feel the deepest solicitude that their minds and principles 
should he so strengthened and stayed upon their God and Saviour 
as to give them all needed support in a time of such trial and 
suflFering. You are so situated as perhaps not to recall so fre- 
quently to your mind as may be necessary the principles in 
which you have been educated. But let me, in the aljsence of 
these objects, remind you that God is ever present, and sees the 
inmost thoughts ; and, while he allows every one to act freely, he 
gives to such as earnestly and honestly desire to do right all 
needed strength and encouragement to do it. Therefore, my dear 



86 DIARY AXD CORRESPONDENCE. 

son, do not cheat yourself by doing what you suspect may be 
wrong. You are as much accountable to your Maker for an 
enlightened exercise of your conscience, as you would Ijc to me 
to use due diligence in taking care of a bag of money which I 
might send by you to Mr. W. If you were to throw it upon 
deck, or into the bottom of the coach, you would certainly be 
culpable ; but, if you packed it carefully in your trunk, and 
placed the trunk in the usual situation, it would be using com- 
mon care. So in the exercise of your conscience : if you refuse 
to examme whether an action is right or wrong, you voluntarily 
defraud yourself of the guide provided by the Almighty. If you 
do wrong, you have no better excuse than he who had done so 
willingly and wilfully. It is the sincere desire that will be 
accepted." 

To his second son, then at school in Andover, he 
writes : 

" I received your note yesterday, and was prepared to hear 
your cash fell short, as a dollar-bill was found in your chamber 
on the morning you left home. You now see the benefit of 
keeping accounts, as you would not have been sure about this 
loss without having added up your account. Get the habit 
firmly fixed of putting down every cent you receive and every 
cent you expend. In this way you will acquire some knowledge 
of the relative value of things, and a habit of judging and of 
care which will be of use to you during all your life. Among 
the numerous people who have failed in business within my 
knowledge, a prominent cause has been a want of system in 
their affairs, by which to know when their expenses and losses 
exceeded their profits. This habit is as necessary for profes- 
sional men as for a merchant ; because, in their business, there 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 87 

are numerous ways to make little savings, if they find their income 
too small, which they would not adopt witliout looliing at the 
detail of all their expenses. It is the habit of consideration I 
wish you to acquire ; and the habit of being accurate will have 
an influence upon your whole character in life." 

(to niS SON IN FRiNXE.) 

" April 28, 1829. 

"I beseech you to consider well the advantages you enjoy, and 
to avail yourself of your opportunities to give your manners a 
little more ease and polish ; for, you may depend upon it, man- 
ners are highly important in your intercourse with the woidd. 
Good principles, good temper, and good maimers, will carry a 
man through the world much better than he can get along with 
the absence of either. The most important is good principles. 
Without these, the best manners, although, for a time, very 
acceptable, cannot sustain a person in trying situations. 

" If you live to attain the age of thirty, the interim will 
appear but a span ; and yet at that time you will be in the full 
force of manhood. To look forward to that period, it seems very 
long ; and it is long enough to make great improvement. Do not 
omit the opportunity to acquire a character and habits that will 
continue to improve during the remainder of life. At its close, 
the reflection that you have thus done will be a support and stay 
worth more than any sacrifice you may ever feel called on to 
make in acquiring these habits." 

(to the same.) 

" June 7, 1820. 

"I was forcibly reminded, on entering our tomb last evening, 
of the mroads which death has made in our family since 1811, at 
the period when I purchased it. How soon any of us who sur- 
vive may mmgle our dust with theirs, is only known to Omnis- 



88 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

cience ; but, at longest, it can be in bis view Init a moment, a 
mere point of time. How important, tben, to us who can use this 
mere point for our everlasting good, that we should do it, and not 
squander it as a thing without value ! Think upon this, my son ; 
and do not merely admit the thought into your mind and drive it 
out by vain imaginations, but give it an abiding and practical use. 
To set a just value upon time, and to make a just use of it, 
deprives no one of any rational pleasure : on the contrary, it 
encourages temperance in the enjoyment of all the good things 
which a good Providence has placed within our reach, and thank- 
fulness for all opportunities of bestowing happmess on our fellow- 
beings. Thus you have an opportunity of making me and your 
other friends happy, by diligence in your studies, temperance, 
truth, integrity, and purity of life and conversation. I may not 
write to you again for a number of weeks, as I shall commence a 
journey to Canada in a few days. You will get an account of 
the journey from some of the party." 



CHAPTER XII. 

JOURNEY TO CANADA. — LETTERS. — DURY. — CHARITIES. 

Mr. Lawrence, with a large party, left Boston on 
the 13th of June, and passed through Vermont, across 
the Green Mountains, to Montreal and Quebec. Com- 
pared with these days of railroad facilities, the journey 
was slow. It was performed very leisurely in hired 
private vehicles, and seems to have been much enjoyed. 
He gives a glowing account of the beauty of the 
country through which he passed, as well as liis 
impressions of the condition of the population. 

From Quebec the party proceeded to Niagara Falls, 
and returned through the State of New York to Bos- 
ton, " greatly improved in health and spirits." This, 
with one other visit to Canada several years before, 
was the only occasion on which Mr. Lawrence ever 
left the territory of the United States ; for, though 
sometimes tempted, in after years, to visit the Old 
World, his occupations and long-continued feeble 
health prevented his doing so. 

12 89 



90 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

(to ms SON.) 

" July 27. 

" If, in an endeavor to do right, tvc fall short, yye shall still 
be in the way of duty ; and that is first to be looked at. We 
must keep in mind that we are to render an account of the use 
of those talents which are committed to us ; and we are to be 
judged by unerring Wisdom, which can distinguish all the 
motives of action, as well as weigh the actions. As our steward- 
ship has been faithful or otherwise, will be the sentence pro- 
nounced upon us. Give this your best thoughts, for it is a 
consideration of vast importance." 

" August 27. 

" Bring home no foreign fancies which are inapplicable to our 
state of society. It is very common for our young men to come 
home and appear quite ridiculous in attempting to mtroduce 
their foreign fashions. It should be always kept in mind that 
the state of society is widely diflFcrent here from that in Europe ; 
and our comfort and character require it should long remain so. 
Those who strive to introduce many of the European habits and 
fashions, by displacing our own, do a serious injury to the 
repuljlic, and deserve censure. An idle person, with good pow- 
ers of mind, becomes torpid and mactive after a few years of 
indulgence, and is incapable of making any high effort ; highly 
important it is, then, to avoid this enemy of mental and moi'al 
improvement. I have no wish that you pursue trade. I would 
rather see you on a farm, or studying any profession." 

" October IG. 

" It should always be your aim so to conduct yourself that 

those whom you value most in the world would approve your 

conduct, if all your actions were laid bare to their inspection ; 

and thus j'ou will be pretty sure that He who sees the motive of 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 91 

all oiiY actions ivill accept the good designed, though it foil short 
in its accomplishment. You are young, and are placed in a 
situation of great peril, and are perhaps sometimes tempted to do 
things which you would not do if you knew yourself under the 
eye of your guardian. The blandishments of a beautiful city 
may lead you to forget that you are always surrounded, sup- 
ported, and seen, by that best Guardian." 

" December 27. 
" I suppose Christmas is observed with great pomp in France. 
It is a day which our Puritan forefathers, in their separation 
from the Church of England, endeavored to blot out from the 
days of religious festivals ; and this because it was observed with 
so muclji pomp by the Romish Church. In this, as well as in 
many other things, they were as unreasonable as though they 
had said they would not eat bread because the Roman Catholics 
do. I hope and trust the time is not far distant when Christmas 
will be observed by tlic descendants of the Puritans with all 
suitable respect, as the first and highest holiday of Christians ; 
combining all the feelings and views of New England Thanks- 
giving with all the other feelings appropriate to it." 

" January 31, 1830. 
" You have seen, perhaps, that the Directors of the Bunker 
Hill Monument Association have applied to the Legislatui-e for a 
lottery. I am extremely sorry for it. I opposed the measure in 
all its stages, and feel mortified that they have done so. They 
cannot get it, and I desire that General Lafiiyette may understand 
this ; and, if he will write us a few lines during the coming 
year, it will help us in getting forward a subscription. When 
our citizens shall have had one year of successful business, they 
will be ready to give the means to finish the monument. My 



92 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

feelings are deeply interested in it, believing it liigbly valuable 
as a nucleus for the affections of the people in after time : and, 
if my life be spared and my success continue, I will never cease 
my efforts until it be completed." 

Further details will be given in this volume to show 
how nobly Mr. Lawrence persevered in the resolution 
thus deliberately formed ; and, though he was destined 
to witness many fruitless efforts, he had the satisfaction 
at last of seeing the completion of the monument, and 
from its summit of pointing out the details of the 
battle to the son of one of the British generals in 
command* on that eventful day. 

On the same page with the estimate of his property 
for the year 1830, he writes : 

" With a view to know the amount of my expenditures for 
objects other than the support of my family, I have, for the year 
1829, kept a particular account of such other expenses as come 
under the denomination of charities, and appropriations for the 
benefit of others not of my own household, for many of whom I 
feel under the same obligation as for my own family." 

This memorandum was commenced on the 1st of 
January, 1829, and is continued until December 30, 
1852, the last day of his life. It contains a com- 
plete statement of his charities during that whole 
period, including not only what he contributed in 
money, but also all other donations, in the shape of 

* Lord Prudhoe, now Duke of Northumberland. 



DIARY AND CORRESPOXDENCE. 93 

clothing materials, books, provisions, &c. His cus- 
tom was to note down at cost the value of the dona- 
tion, after it had been despatched ; whether in the 
shape of a book, a turkey, or one of his immense 
bundles of varieties to some poor country minister's 
family, as large, as he says in addressing one, " as a 
small haycock." Two rooms in his house, and some- 
times three, were used principally for the reception of 
useful articles for distribution. There, when stormy 
weather or ill health prevented him from taking his 
usual drive, he was in the habit of passing hours in 
selecting and packing up articles which he considered 
suitable to the wants of those whom he wished to aid. 
On such days, his coachman's services were put in 
requisition to pack and tie up " the small haycocks ; " 
and many an illness was the result of over-exertion 
and fatigue in supplying the wants of his poorer 
brethren. These packages were selected according to 
the wants of the recipients, and a memorandum made 
of the contents. In one case, he notifies Professor 

, of College, that he has sent by railroad 

" a barrel and a bundle of books, with broadcloth and 
pantaloon stuffs, with odds and ends for poor students 
when they go out to keep school in the winter." 
Another, for the president of a college at the West, 
one piece of silk and worsted, for three dresses ; one 
piece of plaid, for " M. and mamma ; " a lot of pretty 
books ; a piece of liguum-vitte from the Navy Yard, 



94 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

as a text for the support of the navy ; and various 
items for the chiklren : vahie, twenty-five dollars. 

To a professor in a college in a remote region he 
sends a package containing " dressing-gown, vest, 
hat, slippers, jack-knife, scissors, pins, neck-handker- 
chiefs, pantaloons, cloth for coat, ' History of Groton,' 
lot of pamphlets," &c. 

Most of the packages forwarded contained substan- 
tial articles for domestic use, and were often accom- 
panied by a note containing from five to fifty dollars 
in money. 

The distribution of books was another mode of 
usefulness to which Mr. Lawrence attached much 
importance. 

In his daily drives, his carriage was well stored with 
useful volumes, which he scattered among persons of 
aU classes and ages as he had opportunity. 

These books were generally of a religious character, 
while others of a miscellaneous nature were purchased 
in large numbers, and sent to institutions, or individ- 
uals in remote parts of the country. 

He purchased largely the very useful as well as 
tasteful volumes of the American Tract Society and 
the Sunday-School Union. An agent of tlie latter 
society writes : "I had almost felt intimately ac- 
quainted with him, as nearly every pleasant day he 
visited the depository to fill the front seat of his coach 
with books for distribution." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 95 

Old aud young, rich and poor, sliared equally in 
these distributions ; and he rarely allowed an occasion 
to pass unimproved when he thought an influence could 
be exerted by the gift of an appropriate volume. 

While waiting one day in his carriage with a friend, 
in one of the principal thoroughfares of the city, he 
beckoned to a genteelly-dressed young man who was 
passing, and handed him a book. Upon being asked 
whether the young man w\is an acquaintance, he 
replied : 

" No, he is not ; but you remember where it is 
written, ' Cast thy bread upon the waters, for thou 
shalt find it after many days.' " 

" A barrel of books " is no uncommon item found in 
his record of articles almost daily forwarded to one and 
another of his distant beneficiaries. 



CHArTEE XIII. 

CORRESPONDENCE WITH MR. WEBSTER. — LETTERS. 

(to nis so.v.) 

" Feln-uary 5, 1830. 

" Be sure and visit La Grange before you return ; say to Gen- 
eral Lafayette that the Bunker Hill Monument will certainly he 
finished, and that the foolish project of a lottery has been aban- 
doned. If, in the course of Providence, I should be taken away, 
I hope my children will feel it a duty to continue the efforts that 
are made in this work, -which I have had so much at heart, and 
have labored so much for." 

To Ms son, then at school at Versailles, he writes 
on Feb. 2G, 1830 : 

" After hearing from you again, I can judge better what to 
advise respecting your going into Spain. At all events, let no 
hope of going, or seeing, or doing anything else, prevent your 
using the present time for improving yourself in -ffhatcver you 
find to do. My greatest fear is, that you may form a wrong 
judgment of what constitutes your true respectability, happiness, 
and usefulness. To a youth just entering on the scenes of life, 
the roses on the wayside appear without thorns; but, in the 
eagerness to snatch them, many find, to their sorrow, that all 
which appears so fail- is not m possession what it was in prospect, 

96 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 97 

and that beneath the rose there is a thorn that sometimes wovmds 
like a serpent's bite. Let not appearances deceive you ; for, 
when once you have strayed, the second temptation is more likely 
to be fallen into than the first." 

" March 6, 1830. 

" We are all in New England deeply interested by Mr. Web- 
ster's late grand speech in the Senate, vindicating New England 
men and New England measures from reproach heaped upon 
them by the South ; it was his most powerful eifort, and you will 
see the American papers are full of it. You should read the 
whole debate between him and Mr. Hayne of South Carolina; 
you will find much to instruct and interest you, and much of 
what you ought to know. Mr. Webster never stood so high in 
this country as at this moment ; and I doubt if there be any man, 
either in Europe or America, his superior. The doctrines upon 
the Constitution in this speech should be read as a text-book by 
all our youth." 

After reading the great speech of Mr. Webster, Mr. 
Lawrence addressed to that gentleman a letter, ex- 
pressing his admiration of the manner in which New 
England had been vindicated, and also his own per- 
sonal feelings of gratitude for the proud stand thus 
taken. 

Mr. Webster replied as follows : 

" Washington, March 8, 1830. 

" Dear Sir: I thank you very sincerely for your very kind 

and friendly letter. The sacrifices made ia being here, and the 

mortifications sometimes experienced, are amply compensated by 

the consciousness that my friends at home feel that I have done 
13 



98 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE 

some little service to our New England. I pray you to remem- 
ber me with very true regard to Mrs. Lawrence, and believe me 
" Very faithfully and gratefully yours, 

" Daniel Webster. 
" To Amos Lawrence, Esq." 



EXTRACTS OF LETTERS TO HIS SON. 

" April 13, 1830. 

" You may feel very sure that any study which keeps your 
mind engaged will be likely to strengthen it ; and that, if you 
leave your mind inactive, it will run to waste. Your arm is 
strengthened by wielding a broadsword, or even a foil. Your 
legs by various gymnastic exercises, and the organs of sight and 
hearing by careful and systematic use, are greatly improved ; 
even the finger is trained, by the absence of sight, to perform 
almost the service of the eye. All this shows how natural it is 
for all the powers to grow stronger by use. You needed not 
these examples to convince you ; Init my desire to have you 
estimate your advantages properly induces me to write upon 
them very often. Every American youth owes his country his 
best talents and services, and should devote them to the country's 
welfare. In doing that, you will promote not only your own 
welfare, but your highest enjoyment. 

" The duty of an American citizen, at this period of the 
world, is that of a responsible agent ; and he should endeavor to 
transmit to the next age the institutions of our country uninjured 
and improved. We hope, in your next letter, to hear something 
more of General Lafayette. The old gentleman is most warm in 
his affection for Americans. May he live long to encourage and 
bless by his example the good of all countries ! Li contemplat- 
ing a life like his, who can say that compensation even here is 
not fully made for all the anguish and suffering he has formerly 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 99 

endured ? Long life does not consist in many years ; but in the 
period being filled Tvith good services to our fellow-beings. He 
whose life ends at thirty may have done much, while he who has 
reached the age of one hundred may have done little. With the 
Almighty, a thousand years are a moment ; and he will therefore 
give no credit to any talents not used to his glory ; which use is 
the same thing as promoting, by all means in our power, the 
welfare and happiness of the beings among whom we are placed." 

" May 7, 1830. 

" I have been pretty steady at my business, without working 
hard, or having; anxious feelings about it. It is well to have an 
agreeable pursuit to employ the mind and body. I think that I 
can work for the next six years with as good a relish as ever I 
did ; but I make labor a pleasure. I have just passed into my 
forty-fifth year, you know. At my age, I hope you will feel as 
vigorous and youthful as I now do. A temperate use of the 
good things of life, and a freedom from anxious cares, tend, as 
much as anything, to keep off old age.'' 

" June 17, 1830. 

" To-day completes fifty-five years since the glorious battle of 
Bunker Hill, ami five years since the nation's guest assisted at 
the laying of the corner-stone of the monument which is to com- 
memorate to all future times the events which followed that 
battle. If it should please God to remove me before this struc- 
ture is completed, I hope to remember it in my will, and that my 
sons will live to see it finished. But what I deem of more con- 
sequence is to retain for posterity the battle-field, now in the 
possession of the Bunker Hill Monument Association. The 
Association is in debt, and a part of the land may pass out of its 
possession ; but I hope, if it do, there will be spirit enough 



100 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

among individuals to purchase it and restore it again ; for I would 
rather the whole work should not be resumed for twenty years, 
than resume it by parting with the land. I name this to you 
now, that you may have a distinct intimation of my wishes to 
keep the land open for our children's chikh'cn to the end of 
time." 

" July 17, 1830. 

" Temptation, if successfully resisted, strengthens the charac- 
ter ; but it should always be avoided. ' Lead us not into tempta- 
tion ' are words of deep meaning, and should always carry with 
tliem corresponding desires of obedience. At a large meeting of 
merchants and others held ten days ago, it was resolved to make 
an effort to prevent the licensing of such numbers of soda-shops, 
retailers of spirits, and tlie like, which have, in my 023inion, done 
more than anything else to debase and ruin the youth of our 
city. It is a gross perversion of our privileges to waste and 
destroy ourselves in this way. God has given us a good land and 
many blessings. We misuse them, and make them minister to 
our vices. We shall be called to a strict account. Every good 
citizen owes it to his God and his country to stop, as for as he 
can, this moral desolation. Let me see you, on your return, an 
advocate of good order and good morals. * * * 

" Our old neighbor the sea-serpent was more than usually 
accommodating the day after we left Portsmouth. He exhibited 
himself to a great numljer of people who were at Hampton Beach 
last Saturday. They had a full view of his snakeship from the 
shore. He was so civil as to raise his head about four feet, and 
look into a boat, where were three men, who thought it the wisest 
way to retreat to their cabin. His length is supposed to be about 
one hundred feet, his head the size of a ten-gallon cask, and his 
body, in the largest part, about the size of a barrel. I have 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 101 

never had any more doubt respecting the existence of this animal, 
since he was seen here eleven years ago, than I have had of the 
existence of Bonaparte. The evidence was as strong to my mind 
of the one as of the other. I had never seen either ; liut I was 
as well satisfied of the existence of both, as I should have been 
had I seen both. And yet the idea of the sea-serpent's existence 
has been scouted and ridiculed." 

" September 25. 
" The events of the late Fi'ench Revolution have reached us up 
to the 17th August. The consideration of them is animating, 
and speaks in almost more than human language. We are poor, 
frail, and mortal beings ; but there is something elevating in the 
thought of a whole people acting as with the mind and the aim of 
one man, a part which allies man to a higher order of beings. I 
confess it makes me feel a sort of veneration for them ; and trust 
that no extravagance will occur to mar the glory and the dignity 
of this enterprise. Our beloved old hero, too, acting as the 
guiding and presiding genius of this wonderful event ! May God 
prosper them, and make it to the French people what it is capa- 
ble of being, if they make a right use of it ! I hope that you 
have been careful to see and learn everything, and that you will 
preserve the information you obtain in such a form as to recall 
the events to your mind a long time hence. We are all very well 
and very busy, and in fine spirits, here in the old town of Boston. 
Those who fell behind last year have some of them placed them- 
selves in the rear rank, and are again on duty. Others are laid 
up, unfit for duty ; and the places of all are supplied with fresh 
troops. We now present as happy and as busy a community as 
you would desire to see." 



CIIAPTEE XIV. 



TESTIMOIsXiL TO MR. "WEBSTER, — DANGEROUS ILLNESS.— 
LETTERS. 

During the autumn of 1830, m order to testify in a 
more marlvod manner his appreciation of Mr. Webster's 
distinguished services in the Senate of the United 
States, Mr. Lawrence presented to that gentleman a 
service of silver plate, accompanied by the following 
note : 

,,jjn w " Boston, October 23, 1830. 

" Hon. Daniel Wedster. ' ' 

" Dear Sir : Permit me to request your acceptance of the 
accompanying small service of plate, as a testimony of my grati- 
tude for your services to the country in your late efforts in the 
Senate ; especially for your vindication of the character of Massa^ 
chusetts and of New England. 

" From your friend and fellow-citizen, 

"Amos Lawrence. 

"P. S. — If by any emblem or inscription on any piece of 
this service, referring to the circumstances of which this is a 
memorial, the whole will be made more acceptable, I shall be glad 
to have you designate what it shall be, and permit me the oppor- 
tunity of adding it." 

102 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 103 

To which Mr. Webster replied, on the same evening, 
as follows : 

" SuJDiER-sTREET, October 23, 1830. 
" My dear Sir : I cannot well express my sense of your 
kindness, manifested in the present of plate, which I have received 
this evening. I know that, from you, this token of respect is 
sincere ; and I shall ever value it, and be happy in leaving it to 
my children, as a most gratifying evidence of your friendship. 
The only thing that can add to its value is your permission that it 
may be made to bear an inscription expressive of the donation. 
" I am, dear sir, with unfeigned esteem, 

" Your friend and obedient servant, 

" Daniel Webster. 

"Amos Lawrence, Esq." 



(to his son.) 

" Boston, January 16, 1831. 
" Our local afiairs are very delightful in this state and city. 
"We have no violent political animosities ; and the prosperity of 
the people is very great. In our city, in particular, the people 
have not had greater prosperity for twenty years. There is a 
general industry and talent in our population, that is calculated 
to produce striking results upon their character. In your I'eflec- 
tions upon your course, you may settle it as a principle, that no 
man can attain any valuable influence or character among us, who 
does not labor with whatever talents he has to increase the sum of 
human improvement and happiness. An idler, who feels that he 
has no responsibilities, but is contriving to get rid of time without 
being useful to any one, whatever be his fortune, can find no com- 
fort in staying here. We have not enough such to make up a 
society. We are literally all working-men ; and the attempt to 



104 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

get up a ' Working-men's party ' is a libel upon the whole popu- 
lation, as it implies that there are among us large numbers who 
are not working-men. He is a working-man whose mind is 
employed, whether in making researches into the meaning of 
hieroglyphics or in demonstrating any invention in the arts, just 
as much as he who cuts down the forests, or holds the plough, or 
swings the sledge-hammer. Therefore let it be the sentiment of 
your heart to use all the talents and powers you may possess in 
the advancement of the moral and political influence of New 
England. New England, I say ; for here is to be the stronghold 
of liberty, and the seat of influence to the vast multitude of mil- 
lions who are to people this republic." 



At tlie period when the preceding letter was writ- 
ten, the manufacturing interests had become of vast 
importance in this community ; and the house of 
which Mr. Lawrence was the senior partner had iden- 
tified itself with many of the great manufacturing 
corporations already created, or then in progress. 
With such pecuniary interests at stake, and with a 
sense of responsibility for the success of these enter- 
prises, which had been projected on a scale and plan 
hitherto unknown, it may be supposed that his mind 
and energies were fully taxed, and that he could be 
fairly ranked among the working-men alluded to. 
While in the full tide of active life, and, as it were, at 
the crowning point of a successful career, the hand of 
Providence was laid upon him to remove him, for the 
rest of his days, from this sphere of honor and activity 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 105 

to the chamber of the invalid, and the comparatively- 
tame and obscure walks of domestic life. Ever after 
tliis, his life hung upon a thread ; and its very uncer- 
tainty, far from causing him to despond and rest from 
future effort, seemed only to excite the desire to work 
while the day lasted. The discipline thus acquired, 
instead of consigning him to the inglorious obscurity 
of a sick chamber, was the means of his entering upon 
that career of active philanthropy which is now the 
great source of whatever distinction there may be 
attached to his memory. His business life was ended ; 
and, though he was enabled to advise with others, and 
give sometimes a direction to the course of affairs, he 
assumed no responsibility, and had virtually retired 
from the field. 

On the 1st of June, 1831, the weather being very 
warm, Mr. Lawrence, while engaged in the business 
of his counting-room, drank moderately of cold water, 
and, soon after, was seized with a violent and alarming- 
illness. The functions of the stomach seemed to have 
been destroyed ; and, for many days, there remained 
but small hope of his recovery. Much sympathy was 
expressed by his friends and the public, and in such a 
manner as to afford gratification to his family, as well 
as surprise to himself when sufficiently recovered to be 
informed of it. He had not yet learned the place 
which he had earned, in the estimation of those around 
him, as a merchant and a citizen ; and it was, not 

14 



106 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

improbably, a stimulus to merit, by his future course, the 
high encomiums which were then lavished upon him. 

Mr. Lawrence announced his sickness to his son, 
then in Spain, in the following letter, dated 

" Boston, June 27; 1831. 
" I desire to bless God for being agaia permitted to address you 
in tliis way. On the 1st day of this month, I -was seized with a 
violent illness, which caused both myself and my friends almost 
to despair of my life. But, by the blessing of God, the remedies 
proved efficacious ; and I am still in the land of the living, with 
a comfoi-table prospect of acquiring my usual health, although, 
thus far, not allowed to leave my chamber. In that di'cad hour 
when I thought that the next perhaps would be my last on earth, 
■ — • my thoughts resting upon my God and Saviour, then upon the 
past scenes of my life, then upon my dear children, — the bebef 
that their minds are well directed, and that they will prove 
blessings to society, and fulfil, in some good degree, the design 
of Providence in placing them here, was a balm to my spirits 
that proved more favorable to my recovery than any of the other 
remedies. May you never forget that every man is individually 
responsible for his actions, and must be held accountable for his 
opportunities ! Thus he who has ten talents will receive a pro- 
portionate reward, if he makes a right use of them ; and he who 
receives one will be punished, if he hides it in a napkin." 

" June 29, 1831. 

" My dear and ever-honored Mother : Through the 
divine goodness, I am once more enabled to address you by 
letter, after having passed through a sickness alarming to my 
friends, although to myself a comparatively quiet one. I cannot 
in words express my grateful sense of God's goodness in thus 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 107 

carrying me, as it were, in his hand, and lighting the way by the 
brightness of his countenance. During that j^eriod in which I 
considered my recovery as hardly probable, my mind was calm ; 
and, while in review of the past I found many things to lament, 
and in contemplation of the future much to fear, but more to 
hope, I could find no other words in which to express my 
thoughts than the words of the publican, ' God be merciful to me 
a sinner ! ' All the small distinctions of sects and forms dwindled 
into air, thin air, and seemed to me even more worthless than 
ever. The cares and anxieties of the world did not disturb me, 
believing it to be of small moment whether I should be taken 
now or spared a few years longer. With returning health and 
strength, different prospects open, and different feelings take the 
place of those which were then so appropriate ; and the social 
feelings and sympathies have their full share in their hold upon 
me. * * * * 

" From your ever-lovmg and dutiful son, A. L." 

(to his son.) 

" July 14. 
" I have been constantly gaining since my last to you, and, 
with constant care, hope to acquire my usual health. I am, 
however, admonished, by the two attacks I have experienced 
within a month, that the continuance of my life for any consider- 
able period will be very likely to depend upon a rigid prudence in 
my labor and living. The recovery from this last sickness is 
almost like being restored to life ; and I hope the span that may 
be allowed me may be employed in better service than any period 
of my past life. We are placed here to be disciplined for another 
and higher state ; and whatever happens to us makes a part of 
this discipline. In this view, we ought never to murmur, but to 



108 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

consider, when ills befall us, how we can make them subserve our 
highest good. What I am more desirous than anything else for 
you is, that you may feel that you are accountable for all your 
talents, and that you may so use them as to have an approving 
conscience, and the final recompense of a faithful servant at last. 
The period of trial is short; but the consequences are never- 
endinfT. How important to each individual, then, — to you and 
to me, — that we use aright the period assigned us ! " 



CHAPTEE XV. 

JODENEY TO NEW HAMPSHIRE. — LETTERS. — KESIGNS OFFICE OF 
TRUSTEE AT HOSPITAL. — LETTERS. 

A FEW days after the date of the preceding letter, a 
change was thought desirable for the improvement of 
Mr. Lawrence's health ; and he accordingly, with 
Mrs. L., went to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and 
remained a week with his friend and brother-in-law, 
the late Hon. Jeremiah Mason. From thence he pro- 
ceeded to visit friends in Amherst, New Hampshire, 
where he was attacked by a severe rheumatic fever, 
which confined him for several weeks ; and it was with 
great difficulty that he succeeded in reaching home 
about the 20th of September, after an absence of nearly 
two months. On the 2Tth of September, he writes to 
his son : 

"It is only within a few days that I have been able to be 
removed to my own house. I am now able to walk my chamber, 
and sit up half the day ; and, by the best care in the world, I 
have a fair hope of again enjoying so much health as to feel that 
I may yet be of some use in the world. My bodily sufiFerings 
have been great during this last sickness ; but my mind in 

109 



110 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

general lias been quiet. I seem to want nothing wliich this 
world can give to make me an enviably happy man, but your 
presence and a return of my health ; but these last are wisely 
withheld. We are apt, in the abundance of the gift, to lose the 
recollection whence it came, and feel that by our own power we 
can go forward. Happy for us that we are thus made to feel that 
all we have is from God ; this recurrence to the Source of all our 
blessmgs makes us better men. I do not expect to be able to 
leave the house before the next spring ; and, in the mean time, 
must be subject to the casualties incident to a person in my 
situation." 

On October 29, Mr. Lawrence, in a letter to the 
same son, expresses his gratitude for the enjoyment 
of life, " even in a sick chamber, as mine must be 
termed." 

"I receive my friends here, and once only have walked abroad 
for a few minutes. I drive in a carriage every pleasant day, and 
I can truly say that my days pass in the full enjoyment of more 
than the average of comfort. My mind is as easy as it ever is, 
and as active as is safe for the body. I employed myself yester- 
day in looking over your letters since you left home three years 
ago, and was reminded by them that the fourth year of your 
absence has just commenced. Although a brief space since it is 
passed, an equal time, if we look forward, appears to be far 
distant. The question you will naturally ask yourself is. How has 
the time been spent ? and from the answer you may gather much 
instruction for the future. If you have made the best use of this 
period, happy is it for you, as the habit of the useful application 
of your time will make its continuance more natural and easy. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. Ill 

If you liave misused and abused your opportunities, there is not a 
moment to be lost in retracing your stejjS, and making good, by 
future effort, what has been lost by want of it. In short, we can 
none of us know that a future will be allowed us to amend and 
to correct our previous misdoings and omissions ; and it is not less 
the part of wisdom than of duty to be always up and doing, that 
whenever our Master comes we may be ready. I never was 
made so ser^ible before of the power of the mind over the body. 
It is a matter of surprise to some of my friends, who have known 
my constant habits of business for a quarter of a century, that I 
can find so much comfort and qviiet in the confinement of my 
house, when I feel so well, and there are so many calls for my 
labors abroad. I hope to pursue such a discreet course as shall 
allow me to come forth in the spring with my poor frame so fai- 
renovated and restored as to enable me to take my place among 
the active laborers of the day, and do what little I may for the 
advancement and well-being of my generation. If, however, I 
should, by any accident or exposure, be again brought to a bed of 
pain and suifcring, may God grant me a patient and submissive 
temper to bear whatever may be put upon me, with a full con- 
viction that such chastisements will tend to my good, if I make a 
right use of them ! " 

The first of January, 1832, found Mr. Lawrence 
confined to his side room, and unable, from bodily 
weakness, to drive out in the open air, as he had 
hitherto done. lie writes to his son : 

'■ I am reminded, by the new year, that another poi'tion of 
time has passed, by which we are accustomed to measure in 
prospect the space that is allotted us here ; and the reflections at 



112 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

tlie close of the old and the commencement of the new year are 
calculated, if wo do not cheat ourselves, to make us better than 
we otherwise should be. I am enjoying myself highly under the 
close confinement of two parlor chambers, from which I have only 
travelled into the entry since November. I have lived pretty 
much as other prisoners of a different character live, as regards 
food ; namely, on bread and water, or bread and coffee or cocoa. 
I have come to the conclusion that the man who lives on bread 
and water, if he have enough, is the genuine epicure, according to 
the original and true meaning. I am favored with the visits of 
more pretty and interesting ladies than any layman in the city, I 
believe. My rooms are quite a resort ; and, old fellow as I am, 
I have the vanity to suppose I render myself quite agreeable to 
them." 

On the same day, in a letter of sympathy to his 
sister-in-law, whose invalid son was about to leave for 
a long voyage, he writes : 

" While my family are all absent at church, I am sitting alone, 
my mind going back to the beginning of the year just ended 
and forward through that just commenced ; and, in view of 
both periods, I can see nothing but the unbounded goodness 
of our heavenly Father and best friend, in all that has been 
taken from me, as well as in all that is left to me. I can 
say, with sincerity, that I never have had so much to call forth 
my warmest and deepest gratitude for favors bestowed as at the 
present time. Among my sources of happiness is a settled con- 
viction that, in chastening his children, God desires their good ; 
and if his chastisements are thus viewed, we cannot I'eceive them 
in any other light than as manifestations of his fatherly care and 
kindness. Although, at times, ' clouds and darkness are round 



UIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 113 

about him,' wc do certainly know, by tlie Tvortls of inspiration. 
' that justice and judgment are the habitation of his throne,' and 
goodness and mercy the attributes of his character; and if it 
should please him further to try me with disease during the period 
of my probation, my prayer to him is that my mind and heart 
may remain stayed on him, and that I may practically illustrate 
those words of our blessed Saviour, ' Not my will, but thine bo 
done.' It is quite possible that there may still be a few years of 
probation for me ; but it is more probable that I may not remain 
here to the close of the present; but whether I remain longer 
or shorter is of little consequence, compared with the preparation 
or the dress in wliich I may be found when called away. It has 
seemed to me that the habit of mind we cultivate here will be that 
which will abide with us hereafter ; and that heaven is as truly 
begun here as that the affections which make us love our friends 
grow stronger by use, and improve by cultivation. We arc here m 
our infoncy ; the feelings cherished at tliis period grow with our 
growth, and, in the progress of time, will fit us for the highest 
enjoyments of the most distant future. I say, then, what sources 
of happiness are open to us, not only for the present, but for all 
future time ! These hasty remarks are elicited on occasion of the 
separation so soon to take place from your son. I know full well 
the anxieties of a parent on such an occasion. 

'■His health cannot, of course, be certainly predicted; but you 
will have the comfort of knowing that you have done everything 
that the fondest parents could do in this particular, whatever effect 
the absence may have upon him. 

" should feel that his obligations are increased, with his 

means and opportunities for improvement. If by travel he 
acquire a better education, and can make himself more useful on 
his return, he can no more divest himself of his increased duties, 
15 



114 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

than lie can clivest himself of his duty to be honest. The account 
is to be rendered for the use of the talents, T\-hether they be ten, 
or five, or one. K I have opportunity, I shall write a few lines 

to before he leaves. If I should not, I desire him to feel 

that I have great affection for him, and deep interest in his 
progress, and an ardent hope that his health, improvement, and" 
knowledge, may be commensurate with the rare advantages he will 
enjoy for the acquisition of all. 

" I know the tender feelings of your husband on all things 
touching his family or friends ; and perhaps I may find opportu- 
nity to speak a word of comfort to him. But I know not what 
more to say than to reiterate the sentiment here expressed. 
Nature will have its way for a time, but I hope reason will be 
sufficient to make that time very short. Whatever time it may be, 
of this I feel confident, that, after the feelings have once sub- 
sided, ■ will have all the sunshine and joy which the event is 

calculated to produce. He cannot know until he has realized the 
pleasure of hearing the absent ones speak, as it were, in his ear, 
from a distance of three thousand miles. 

" May the best blessings of the Almighty rest on you and 
yours! From j^our ever aflectiouate A. L." 

(to ms SOX.) 

" Sunday morning, Feb. 5, 1832. 
" I have seated myself at my writing-de.sk, notwithstanding it 
is holy time, in the hope and belief that I am in the way of duty. 
This consecration of one day in seven to the duties of religion, — 
comprising, as these do, every duty, — and if they be well per- 
formed, to self-examination, is a glorious renovation of the world. 
Who that has witnessed the efiects of this rest upon the moral 
and physical condition of a peojtle, can doubt the wisdom of the 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 115 

appointment ? Wherever we turn our eyes or our thoughts, if we 
only will be as honest and candid, in our estimate of the value of 
the provision made for us, as we ordinarily are in our estimate of 
the character and conduct of our fellow-men, we must be struck 
with admiration and gratitude to that merciful Father who has 
seen our wants, and provided for our comfort to an extent to which 
the care and jirovision of the best earthly parents for their children 
hardly gives the name of resemblance." 

In speaking of some application for aid which he 
had received from a charitable institution, he writes to 
his son : 

" Our people are liberally disposed, and contrilmte to most 
objects which present a fair claim to their aid. I think you will 
find great advantage in doing this part of your duty upon a 
system which you can adopt ; thus, for instance, divide your 
expenses into ten parts, nine of which may Ije termed for what is 
considered necessary, making a liberal calculation for such as your 
situation would render proper, and one part applied for the pro- 
motion of objects not directly or legally claiming your support, 
but such as every good citizen would desire to have succeed. 
This, I think, you will find the most agreeable part of your 
expense ; and, if you should be favored with an abundance of 
means later in life, you may enlarge your appropriations of this 
sort, so as to be equal to one tenth of your income. Neither 
yourself nor those who depend upon you will ever feel the poorer. 
I assume that you have plenty, in thus fixing the proportion. I 
believe the rule might be profitably adopted by many who have 
small moans : for they would save more by method than they 
would be required to pay. 



116 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" To-morrow completes a hundred years since the birth of 
Washington. The day will be celebrated, from one end of the 
counti-y to the other, with suitable demonstrations of respect, by 
processions, orations, and religious ceremonies, according to the 
feelings of the people who join in it. I think the spectacle will 
be a grand one, of a whole people brought together to commem- 
orate the birth of one of their fellow-mortals, who by his virtues 
and his talents has made his memory immortal, and whose pre- 
cepts and example are calculated to secure happiness to the 
countless millions of his fellow-beings who are to people this 
vast empire through all future time. It is permitted to few to 
have open to them such a field as Washington had : but no one 
since the Christian era has filled his sphere so gloriously. ^Ye 
are jogging along, in political, theological and commercial afiliirs, 
very much as usual." 

During the month of January, Mr. Lawrence, on 
account of ill health, resigned his seat in the Board 
of Trustees of the Massachusetts General Hospital, in 
which he had served for several years. This duty 
had always been one of unmingled pleasure to him ; 
and, by means of his visits there, and at the McLean 
Asylum for the Insane, under the management of the 
same board, he became conversant with a class of 
sufferers who had excited a great interest in his mind, 
and whom he often visited during the remainder of liis 
life, to cheer them in their sadness, and to convey to 
them such little tokens of kindness as assured them of 
his interest and sympathy. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 117 

lu a letter to his second son, at Andover, he writes, 
April 21 : 

" you -will be glad to hear I have got along very well through 
the wet, cold weather of the week, and am looking forward with 
cheerful hope to the sunny days to come. If it were not for my 
faculty of turning present disappointments to future pleasures in 
prospect, I shouhl run down in spirits. I have always indulged 
myself in ca.stle-lniilding ; but have generally taken care so to 
build as to be in no danger of their fldling on my head, so that 
when I have gone as far with one as is safe, if it docs not promise 
well, I transfer my labor to another, and thus am always supplied 
with objects. The last one finished was conunenced last May, 
and it is one I delight to think of It ^vas then I determined to 
get your Uncle Mason* here. N. thought it a castle without 
foundation, but the result shows otherwise. 

" I send some of W.'s late letters, by which you perceive he is 
not idle ; the thought of the dear fellow makes the tears start. 
God in mercy grant him a safe return, fully impressed with his 
obligations as a man and a Christian ! That I am now living in 
the enjoyment of so much health, surrounded by so many bless- 
iiigs, is overpowering to my feelings. What shall I render unto 
God for all these benefits ? I feel my uinvorthiness, and devoutly 
pray him that I may never lose sight of the great end of my 
being ; and that, whenever it shall please him to call me hence, I 
may be found in the company of the redeemed through the merits 
and mediation of the Son of his love. If there is any one thing 
I would impress on your mind more strongly than another, it is 
to give good heed to the religious impressions with which you 

* Hon. Jeremiah Jlason, of Portsmouth, New Hampshu-e, who passed 
the rest of his life in Boston. 



118 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

may be imbued ; and, at a future day, these may prove a founda^ 
tion that ■vvill support you vihcn all other supports would fail. 
The youthful imagination frequently magnifies objects at a dis- 
tance ; experience is an able teacher, and detects, too late, 
perhaps, the fraud upon youth. Be wise in time, and avoid this 
fraud." 

A few days later, he writes to the same sou, on the 
subject of systematic charity : 

"It is one of my privileges, not less than one of my duties, to 
be able thus to administer to the comfort of a circle of very dear 
friends. I hope you will one day have the delightful conscious- 
ness of using a ])ortion of your means in a way to give you as 
much pleasure as I now experience. Your wants may l^e brought 
within a very moderate compass ; and I hope you will never feel 
yourself at liberty to waste on yourself such means, as, by sys- 
tem and right principles, may be beneficially applied to the good 
of those around you. Providence has given us unerring princi- 
ples to guide us in our duties of this sort. Our first duty is to 
those of our own household, then extending to kindred, friends, 
neighbors (and the term ' neighbor ' may, in its broadest sense, 
take in the whole human family), citizens of our state, then of 
our country, then of the other countries of the world." 

In auother letter, Avritten soon after the preceding, 
he speaks of certain principles of business which gov- 
erned him in early life, and adds : 

" The secret of the whole matter was, that we had formed the 
habit of promptly acting, thus taking the top of the tide ; while 
the habit of some others was to delay until about half-tide, thus 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 119 

getting on the flats; while we were all the time prepared for 
action, and ready to put into any port that promised well. I 
wish, by all these remarks, to impress upon you the necessity of 
qualifying yourself to support yourself The best education that 
I can secure shall be yours, and such facilities for usefulness as 
may be in my power shall be rendered ; but no food to pamper 
idleness or wickedness will I ever supply willingly to any con- 
nection, however near. I trust I have none who will ever misuse 
so basely anything that may come to them as a blessing. This 
letter, you may think, has an undue proportion of advice. ' Line 
upon line, precept upon precept,' is recommended by one wiser 
than I am." 

(to nis DAUc;nTER.) 

" Sunday morn. 

"My dear Daughter: In the quiet of this morning, my 
mind naturally rests on those objects nearest and dearest to me ; 
and you, my child, are among the first. 

'• The family are all at church, but the weather is not such as 
to permit my going ; and the season by them employed in the 
service of the sanctuary will by me be employed in communi- 
cating with you. 

" You have now arrived at an age when the mind and heart are 
most susceptible of impressions for weal or woe ; and the direction 
which may be given to them is what no parent can view with 
indifference, or pass over without incurring the guilt of being 
unfaithful in his duties. Mj earnest desire for you is, that you 
may fully appreciate your opportunities and responsibilities, and 
so use them that you may acquire a reasonable hope that you may 
secure the object for which we are placed here. The proljation is 
short, but long enough to do all that is required of us, if faith- 
fully used ; the consequences are never-ending. 



120 DIARY AND CORRESPONDEXCE. 

" These simple views are such as any child of your age can 
comprehend, and should he made as familiar to your mind as the 
every-day duties of life. If the mind, from early days, be thus 
accustomed to look upon life as a school of preparation for higher 
services, then the changes and adversities to which we are all 
liable can only be viewed as necessary discipline to fit us for those 
higher services, and as such be considered as apjilied for our good, 
however pamful they may seem at first. There is no truth lietter 
settled than this : that all the discipline of our heavenly Parent, 
if rightly used, will eventuate in our good. How, then, can we 
murmur and repine at his dealings with us ? This conduct only 
shows our weakness and folly, and illustrates the bettor care of 
us than we should take of ourselves. 

" We are in the condition of the sick man, who sometimes 
craves that which, if given him by his friend, would cause his 
certain death ; but he is not aware at the time that it is withheld 
for his good. The importance, then, of cultivating a right 
understanding of the things of which our duties and our happi- 
ness arc composed, is second to no object which can employ the 
mind ; for, with this knowledge, we must suppose that no one 
can be so lost to his own interest as not to feel that in the per- 
formance of these duties is to result the possession of those riches 
whjcli are jaromised to the faithful by our Father in heaven, 
through the Son of his love. In the preparation which awaits 
you, do not stop at the things which are seen, but look to those 
which are unseen. These views, perhaps, may be profitably 
pondered long after I have been gathered to my fathers. 

"The tenure of my life seems very frail: still it may continue 
longer than the lives of my children ; but, whenever it shall 
please God to call me hence, I hope to feel resigned to his will, 
and to leave behind me such an influence as shall help forward 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 121 

the timid and faint-hearted in the path of duty ; and particularly 
on you, my child, do I urge these views. They debar you from 
no real or reasonable pleasure; they speak to you, in strong lan- 
guage, to enjoy all those blessings wliich a bountiful Parent has 
scattered in your path with unsparing plenty, and admonish you 
that to enjoy is not to abuse them ; when abused, they cease to be 

enjoyed." 

16 



CHAPTER XVI. 

DAILY EXERCISE. — EEGIMEN. — IMPROVING HEALTH. — LETTERS. 

During the summer and autumn of 1832, Mr. 
Lawrence's health and strength were so much im- 
proved, that he was enabled to take exercise on horse- 
back ; and almost daily he took long rides, sometimes 
alone, sometimes with a friend, about the environs of 
the city. This habit he was enabled to continue, with 
some intermissions, for two or three years, through 
summer and winter. The efiect of the exercise amidst 
the beautiful scenery of the environs of Boston, of 
which he was an enthusiastic admirer, was most l}ene- 
ficial to his health, and, it is believed, was a great 
means of prolonging his life. Whenever he could do 
so, he secured the company of a friend, and kept a 
horse expressly for the purpose. As the ride was 
taken in the morning, when his business acquaintances 
were occupied, his most usual companion was some one 
of the city clergy, whom he secured for the occasion, 
or one of his sons. No denominational distinctions 
seemed to regulate his choice on these occasions. His 
own beloved pastor and friend, the Eev. Dr. Lothrop, 

122 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 123 

Kev. Drs. Stono and Greenwood, and Father Taylor, 
the seamen's chaplain, were often his companions. 
Occasionally a sti-ay merchant or lawyer was engaged ; 
and, as was sometimes the case where they had not 
been much accustomed to the exercise, a long trot of 
many miles in the sun, or in the face of a keen winter 
north-wester, would severely tax their own strength, 
while they wondered how so frail a figure as that 
of Mr. Lawrence could possess so much endurance. 
With all this apparent energy and strength, he was 
extremely liahlc to illness, which would come when 
least expected, and confine him for days to his house. 
An item of l3ad news, some annoying incident, a little 
anxiety, or a slight cold, would, as it were, paralyze 
his digestive functions, and reduce his strength to the 
lowest point. It was this extreme sensitiveness which 
unfitted him to engage in the general current of 
business, and which compelled him to keep aloof from 
participation in commercial affiurs, and to adopt that 
peculiar system in diet and living which he adhered to 
for the remainder of his life. This system limited him 
to the use of certain kinds of food, which, from time 
to time, was slightly modified, as was thought expe- 
dient. This food was of the most simple kind, and 
was taken in small quantities, after being weighed in 
a balance, which always stood before him upon his 
writing-table. To secure perfect quiet during his 
meals, and also that he might not be tempted to over- 



124 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

step the bounds of prudence, a certain amount was 
sent to him in his chamber, from which he took what 
was allowed. The amount of liquid was also weighed ; 
and so rigid was he in this system of diet, that, for the 
last sixteen years of his life, he sat down at no meal 
with his family. The amount of food taken varied, of 
course, with his strength and condition. In a letter to 
his friend, President Hopkins, of Williams College, he 
says : 

"If your young folks want to know the meaning of epicurean- 
ism, tell them to take some bits of coarse bread (one ounce and a 
little more), soak them in three gills of coarse-meal gruel, and 
make their dinner of them and nothing else ; beginning very 
hungry, and leaving oif more hungry. The food is delicious, and 
such as no modern epicureanism can equal." 

For a considerable period, he kept a regular diet- 
table, in which he noted down the quantity of solid and 
liquid food taken during the twenty-four hours. One 
of his memorandum-books, labelled " Record of Diet 
and Discipline for 1839 and 1840," contains accurate 
records of this sort. 

In October, 1832, in writing to his son in the coun- 
try, he alludes to this improvement in his health and 
strength : 



^o^ 



" We are all doing as well as usual here, myself among them 
doing better than usual. My little ' Doctor ' * does wonders for 



* The name of his horse. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 125 

me. I ritle so much, and so advantageously, that I do not knoiv 

but I shall be bold enough, by and by, to ride to B and back 

m a day, but shall hardly dare do so until I have practised a 
little more in this neighborhood. 

" I want you to analyze more closely the tendency of princi- 
ples, associations, and conduct, and strive to adopt such as viiW 
make it easier for you to go right than go wrong. The moral 
taste, like the natural, is vitiated by abuse. Gluttony, tobacco, 
and intoxicating drink, are not less dangerous to the latter, than 
loose principles, bad associations, and profligate conduct, are to the 
former. Look well to all these things." 

The year 1833 opened with bright and cheering pros- 
pects ; for, with Mr. Lawrence's increasing strength 
and improved health, there seemed a strong ground of 
hope that he might yet recover all his powers, and once 
more take his place among his former business asso- 
ciates. 

He writes at this time to his son at Andover : 

" I am as light as a feather this morning, and feel as if I could 

mount upon a zejihyr, and ride upon its back to A ; but I 

am admonished to be careful when my spirits are thus buoyant, 
lest I come down to the torpor of the insect, which is shut up by 
the frost. E.xtremes are apt to follow, unless I take great care. 
Last Sabbath, I kept my bed, most of the day, with a poor turn. 
Brother A. said, on Saturday, he knew I was going to have one, 
for I talked right on." 

In March, he writes : 



126 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" The season is coming forward now so as to allow me the use 
of the roads around Roxbury and Dorchester. My ' Doctor ' 
looks so altered by a two hours' canter, that his own mother 
■would hardly know him at first sight. We continue excellent 
friends ; and I think he has never used me better than durina; the 
last few days. We both ' feel our oats ' and our youth. I feel 
like sweet twenty-five ; and he, I judge, like vigorous seven." 

On April 28, lie writes to a young friend : 

" When you get married, do not expect a higher degree of per- 
fection than is consistent with mortality in your wife. If you do, 
you will be disappointed. Be careful, and do not choose upon a 
theory either. I dislike much of the nonsense and quackery that 
is dignified with the name of intellectual among people. Old- 
fashioned common sense is a deal better. * * * * 

" There was a part of Boston which used to be visited by 
young men out of curiosity when I first came here, into which I 
never set foot for the whole time I remained a single man. I 
avoided it, because I not only wished to keep clear of the tempta- 
tions common in that part, but to avoid the appearance of evil. 
I never regretted it ; and I would advise all young men to 
strengthen their good resolutions by reflection, and to plant deej) 
and strong the principles of right, and to avoid temptation, as 
time gives them strength to stand against it." 

On December 23, he writes to his wife, who had 
been summoned to the bedside of a dying relative : 

" Your absence makes a great blank in the flimily ; and I feel 
that I must be very careful lest any little accident should make 
me feel of a deep blue while you are away. Confidence is a great 



DIARY AND COIIRESI'ONDENCE. 127 

matter, not only in curing, but in preventing disease, ■whether of 
the body or the mind ; and I have somehow got the notion that I 
am more safe when you * are looking after me than when you are 
not, and that any trouble is sooner cured when you arc present 
than when you are not. This is, I suppose, the true charm 
which some people have faith in to keep off their ills. I have 
been forcibly reminded of the passage of time, by reviewing the 
scenes of the last three years, and am deeply sensible of the 
mercies that have been extended to me. What little I do is a 
poor return : may a better spirit prompt and guide my future 
services ! What few I have rendered are estimated by my breth- 
ren beyond their value, and of course tend to flatter my self-love. 
This should not be ; and I ought to see myself as I am seen by 
that eye that never sleeps. The situation I occupy is one that I 
■would not exchange, if I had the power, with any man living : it 
is full of agreeable incidents, and free from the toils and anxieties 
frequently attendant on a high state of prosperity ; and is, beside, 
free from that jealousy, or from any other cause of uneasiness, so 
common among the ardent and successful in this world's race." 

To his daughter, who -was on a visit at Washington, 
he writes : 

" Boston', May ISth, 1834. Sunday evening. 
"My dear Child: The contrast in the weather to-day with 

♦ The editor, in justice to liis own feelings, will here rem.ark, that ho 
believes the continuation of Mr. Lawrence's life, after he became a con- 
firmed invalid, was, under Providence, in a great measure due to the care 
and faithful attentions of his wife. For more than twenty years, and 
during his frequent seasons of languor and sickness, she aulimitted to many 
sacrifices, and bestowed a degree of care and watclifulness sueh as affecti&u 
alone could have enabled her to render. 



128 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

■what it has been most of the time since you left home, is as great 
as is usual between a bleak November day and the soft air of 
June. To-day it is beautiful, but on Wednesday it snowed, 
hailed, and rained, and I am told, indeed, that a few miles beyond 
Amherst the snow fell four inches in depth. You have reason to 
be thankful that you have been in a milder climate, and, at the 
same time, are seeing all the wonders that open upon you in the 
new world on which you have entered. 

" I shall be expecting a letter from you within a day or two; 
there can be no want of materials where so many new objects arc 
constantly presenting themselves, and there is a pleasure in 
receiving them just as they appear to you ; so you need not bo 
afraid to place before me the first sketches, precisely as you catch 
them. 

" To-day I suppose you are in Philadelphia, and, if so, I hope 
you have attended a Friends' meeting. The manner of worship 
and the appearance of the people are different from anything you 
have seen ; and the influence of this sect upon the taste and man- 
nei'S of the people is very striking, particularly in the matter of 
their dress. It is said that you can judge something of the char- 
acter of a lady from her dress. Without deeming it an essential, I 
think it of some consequence. This strikes the eye only, and may 
deceive ; how much more important that the dress of the heart 
and mind and affections be right, and that no deception be found 
there ! I do most earnestly pray God that every opportunity may 
be improved by you, my dear S., to adorn yourself with all those 
graces that shall not only charm the eye, but also with those that 
shall win the affections of those whose affection you would prize, 
and more especially that you will secure the approval of our best 
Friend. 

* * * * * * 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 129 

" Monday afternoon, May 19. — I have received your charm- 
ing letter, dated on Thursday last. It is just the thing, a simple 
narrative of facts ; and you -ivill find plenty of materials of this 
sort, as I stated to you before. I have been in the saddle to-day 
nearly five hours with your Uncle W. and Father Taylor, and 
am very tired, but shall get refreshed by a night's rest. 

" The day is beautiful, finer than any we have had since you 
left home. We went to Mount Auburn, and it appears very 
lovely ; how much better than the dreary resting-places for the 
dead so common in New England, overgrown with thistles, and 
the graves haitUy designated by a rude stone ! Our Puritan 
forefathei-s mistook very much, I think, in making the place of 
deposit for our mortal remains so forbidding in appearance to the 
living. A better taste is growing among us. It may become a 
matter of ostentation (we are so apt to go to extremes), to build 
sepulchres and monuments to hold our bodies, that will speak to 
our shame when we are no longer sulDJects of trial ; when, in 
short, we shall have gone to our account. If these monuments 
could speak to their living owners, and induce them to labor to 
merit, while they may, a good word from the future lookers on, 
tlien they would be valuable indeed. As it is, I have no fault to 
find ; it is decidedly better than the old fashion of making these 
tenements look as di'eary as anything in this world can look." 

To the same he writes, a few days later : 

" Tell that I saw little this morning. She is the 

sweetest little creature that ever lived, and I find myself smiling 
whenever I X\m\k of the dear child in health. Sympathy is a 
powerful agent in illustrating through the countenance the feel- 
ings within. I believe my face is as arrant a tell-tale as ever was 
worn ; and whenever I think of those I love, under happy circum- 
17 



130 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

stances, I am happy, too. So you may judge how much I enjoy 
in the belief that you are enjoying so much, and doing so well, in 
this journey." 

On February 8, 1835, he writes to a young friend : 

" Take care that fancy does not beguile you of your under- 
sfcxnding in making your choice : a mere picture is not all that is 
needful in the up and down hills of life. The arrangements of 
the household and the sick room have more in them to fasten 
upon the heart than all the beauties and honors of the mere gala 
days, however successfully shown off. Be careful, when you pick, 
to get a heart, a soul, and a body ; not a show of a body that has 
mere vitality. All this comes in by the ears ; but it is in, — I 
will not blot it out." 

March 10, he writes to his sister : 

" I have had so much call for my sympathy, assistance, and 
advice, among my brethren in trade, that I have Little inclination 
or spirit to write social or family letters since my last ; but, in all 
this turmoil and trouble (and it really is as disastrous as a siege 
or a famine to the country), I have kept up a good heart, and have 
been able to view the work of destruction with as much composure 
as the nature of the case will allow. Whatever effects it shall 
produce on my property, I shall submit to, as the inevitable 
destruction that comes without any fault of my own, of course 
■without any self-reproaches ; but for the authors I feel a just 
indignation. As regards the pecuniary distress among us, it is 
subsiding : there have been fewer failures than were anticipated : 
but tliere have been numbers on the brink, who have been saved 
by the help of friends. A few persons have done great service in 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 131 

helping those ^Tho could not help themselves ; and the conse- 
quences will be felt here for years to come in the credit and 
standing of many worthy people, who must otherwise have been 
broken dovra. Brother A. has had a load of care and responsi- 
bility much too severe for him, and has now agreed to throw off a 
part of the business as soon as the present pressure is past." 

April 29, he writes : 

"lam busy these days, but have no very important duties, 
except riding with the ministers and the young ladies." 

Again, a few days later : 

" I am completely on one side, while I appear to be quite busy 
in putting in an oar now and then." 

To his daughter, on her eighteenth birth-day, he 
writes : 

"Boston, May 23, 1835. 
" My dear S. : You have been much in my mind to-<lay, and 
now that I am sitting alone this evening, I place myself at your 
writing-desk to communicate with you, and thus impart some 
portion of those feelings of interest and affection which a return 
of this day brings more strongly into play. Eighteen years of 
your life are now passed, and the events of this period have 
been deeply interesting to me, and have made such impressions 
on you, and have left such marks of progress, I hope, in the 
divine life, as will insure your onward and upward course, until 
you shall join that dear one whose home has been in heaven 
for nearly the whole period of your Ufe. When I look upon 



132 DIAllY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

you, or think of your appearance, the image of your mother is 
before me, and then I feel that deep solicitude that your mind 
and heart may be imbued with those heavenly influences that gave 
a grace and charm to all she did. 

" There is no substitute for those traits, and you may feel 
entire confidence that a practical use of tliem in prosperity will 
prove the best security against the changes which adversity brings 
about. If I were to select for you the richest portion which a 
fond father could choose, it would be that you might have a mind 
and a heart to perform all those duties which your station and 
condition in life require, upon the true Christian principle of 
using your one or more talents, and thus, at the day of account, 
receive the cheering sound of the Master's voice. 

" What treasure will compare with this ? The chai-ms of life 
are captivating to the imagination, but there are none more calcu- 
lated to add to our joys here than elevated Christian principles, 
however they may be branded by the mere worldling as ' cold, 
unsocial,' and the like. You see how imjiortant it is to form a 
just estimate of the value of these different objects. When a 
mistake is made here, the consequences may be never-ending. 
Our danger is in cheating ourselves, by leaving undone those 
things our conscience tells us we ought to do, and doing others 
that it tells us we ought not to do. 

" I have thought, for some time past, my dear child, that your 
mind was laboring under the influence of religious truth, and I 
have been made most comfortable in this belief. Cultivate those 
feelings, and study to make your example good to others, as well 
as safe for yourself Our time here is short, but it is long enough 
to accomplish the work we are sent to perform, and the conse- 
quences will be on our own heads if we omit or neglect to 
do it." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 133 

(to the sajie.) 

" Groton, August 9, 1835. 

" Dear S. : I liavo been talking -with your grandmother, for 
the last hour, upon the events of her early clays, and I feci (as I 
always do when I contrast our present condition with the past) 
that we, as a whole people, and as individuals, have more reasons 
for gratitude and obedience to our heavenly Father than have 
ever before been placed before any people ; and it seems to me we 
are more likely to disregard them than any other people I have 
any knowledge of The fact is, we are so prosperous that we 
seem to forget the source of our prosperity, and take it as a 
matter of course that the character and conduct of a people 
cannot influence their condition. We are ready to say of an 
individual when he has been reckless and extravagant, that he has 
brought destruction on himself Why, then, may not a whole 
people be judged by the same standard? Our great danger arises 
from false principles. We never act above the standard we 
adopt ; and if our standard be so low as to authorize the gratifi- 
cation of the basest passions, how natural that our tastes become 
conformed to this standard ! 

"These reflections arose in my mind by hearing from my 
mother the stories of the ' times that tried men's souls ; ' how she 
was separated from her husband immediately after her marriage, 
when he joined the army in Rhode Island ; how, after a battle, 
his mother said to her ' she did not know but Sam was killed ; ' 
how she fell instantly upon the floor, and how, within a day or 
two, after a separation of eight months, she was rejoiced to see her 
husband safe and sound (although at the time alluded to he had 
been in great peril, having been saved from captivity by the des- 
perate efforts of a company of blacks, and by the fleetness and 
force of his fine charger) ; and how, l:iy confidence in the justness 



134 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

of the cause and the aid of the Almighty, thej trusted they 
should get through the contest, and be permitted to enjoy the 
fruits of their own labor in their own way. And now, what 
proportion of the people do you suppose refer to the aid of the 
Almighty, or to his justice or judgment as a motive to their 
actions, or how far does his fear or his love influence their con- 
duct ? These cpiestions are more easily asked than answered ; 
but they fill the mind with mournful forebodings of the 
necessary consequences to any people of forgetting God and 
departing from his love. You and I, and every individual, have 
it in our power to keep off in some degree this fatal consum- 
mation. Let us, therefore, examine well ourselves, and strive to 
be numbered among those faithful stewards who, at their Master's 
coming, shall be placed among the happy company who enter the 
joy of their Lord. 

"This morning is one of those delightful quiet Sabljaths that 
seem to be like the rest of the saints above. We are all soon to 
be on our way to public worship. * * * * 

(to nis uoTnER.) 

" Aug. 16, 1S3.5. 

"Mr DEAR AND HONORED MoTHER : My miud turns back 

to you almost as frequently as its powers ai-e brought into separate 

action, and always with an interest that animates and quickens my 

pulse ; for, under God, it is by your good influence and teachings 

that I am prepared to enjoy those blessings which he has so 

richly scattered in my patli in all my onward progress in life. 

How could it be otherwise than that your image should be with 

me, unless I should prove wholly unworthy of you? Your 

journey is so much of it performed, that those objects which 

interested you greatly in its early stages have lost their charms ; 

and well it is that they have ; for they now would prove cloijs in 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 135 

the way ; and it is to your cliildren, to your Saviour, and your 
God, that your mind and heart now turn as the natiu'al sources of 
pleasure. Each of these, I trust, in their proper place and degree, 
supply all your wants. The cheering promise that has encouraged 
you when your powers were the highest, will not fail you when 
the weight of years and infirmities have made it more necessary 
to your comfort to get over the few remaining spans of the 
journey. To God I commend you ; and pray him to make the 
path light, and your way confiding and joyful, until you shall 
reach that home prepared for the faithful." 

In a letter to his sister, dated Oct. 25, he further 
alludes to his mother, as follows : 

" My thoughts this morning have been much engaged with my 
early home. I conclude it best to embody them in part, and send 
them forward to add (if they may) a token of gratitude and 
thankfulness to that dear one who is left to us, for her care of our 
early days, and her Christian instruction and example to her 
children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren ; each genera- 
tion of whom, I trust, will be made better in some of its members 
by her. It is more natural, when in our weakness and want, to 
tui'n our thoughts to those whom they have been accustomed to 
look to for assistance ; and thus to me the imjjression of the blessing 
I enjoy in having such a home as mine is, and the blessing I early 
enjoyed of having such a home as mine was under my fiither's 
roof, say to my heart : ' All these increase thy responsibilities, 
and for their use thou must account.' I have had one of my 
slight ill turns within the last two days, that has brought back 
all these feelings with increased force ; and I look upon these as 
gentle monitors, calculated to make me estimate more fully my 
blessings and my duties. Frequently as I am admonished of the 



136 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

frail tenure by wliicb I hold my life, I am negligent and careless 
in the performance of those high and every-day duties which I 
should never lose sight of for an hour. I have also such buoyancy 
of si:iirits, that life seems to mo a very, very great blessing, and I 
do at times strive to make it useful to those around me." 



CHAPTER XYIL 

REFLECTIONS. —VISIT TO WASHINGTON. — VISIT TO RAINSFORD 
ISLAND. — VIEWS OF DEATH. — REFLECTIONS. 

From memorandum-l)ook of property, December 31, 
1S35: 

'•My expenses have been thousand dollars this year; of 

■which about one half went for persons and objects that make me 
feel that it has been well expended, and is better used than to remain 
in my possession. God grant that I may have the disposition to 
use these talents in such manner as to receive at last the joyful 
sound of ' Well done ! ' " 

On March 29, 1836, Mr. Lawrence writes : 

" My anxiety for a day or two about little things kept me from 
the enjoyment of those bright scenes that are so common to me 
when not oppressed by any of these may be events. My nerves 
arc in such a shattered state, that I am quite unfit to encounter 
the responsibilities incident to my station, and I am ashamed of 
myself thus to expose my weakness." 

During the spring, Mr. Lawrence's health was so 
feeble, and his nervous system so shattered, that a 
journey was recommended ; and, in the month of 
18 137 



138 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

May, in company with his friend and pastor, tlie Rev. 
Dr. Lothrop, he paid a visit to his brother Abbott, at 
Washington, then the representative in Congress for 
Boston. During this journey, he experienced a severe 
illness, and was shortly joined by Mrs. Lawrence. 
The A^sit to Washington extended through several 
weeks : and, although his health remained feeble and 
the weather unfavorable, he seems to have been alive 
to objects around him, and interested in what was 
going forward in the halls of Congress as well as in 
the society of the capital. He speaks of visits to the 
houses of Congress, and pleasant rides on horseback, 
' ' with hosts of agreeable companions ready to sally 
forth when tlic weather shall permit." He also takes 
a survey of the general state of society in Washington, 
with an occasional allusion to some particular person- 
age. He writes : 

"It used to be said that Washington and the Springs -were the 
places for matrimonial speculations. I fuel a natural dislike to a 
lady being brought out as an extraordinary affair, having all per- 
fections, and having refused forty-nine offers, and still being on 
the carpet. It shows that she is either very silly herself, or ha.s 
very silly friends, or both. Good strong common sense is wortli 
more than forty-nine offers, with any quantity of slaves, or bank- 
notes, or lands, without it. * * * * * 

" I have passed two hours in the Representatives' Hall and 
Senate Chamber to-day. I heard the usual sparring, and confess 
myself greatly intei-estcd in it. I could learn nothing of the 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 139 

merits of any of the questions ; but I had a preference, such as 
one feels in seeing two dogs figlit, that one sliould Iieat. It was 
very agreeable to me to see and hear those various distinguished 
characters, and goes to demonstrate the common saying, that some 
objects appear smaller by our getting nearer to them.'' 

During this absence, one of his fiiniily remaining at 
home had experienced a light attack of varioloid ; and, 
according to tlie law then in force, was obliged to be 
transported to the Quarantine Hospital, situated in 
Boston Harbor. Soon after Mr. Lawrence's return 
from the South, he paid a visit to Rainsford Island, 
on the invitation of Dr. J. V. C. Smith, then Quaran- 
tine Physician, and there passed some weeks very 
pleasantly, riding about the island on his horse, and 
watching, from the shores, the sea-views, which, with 
the passing ships, here aflV)rd an endless variety. 

In August, he returned to his own house in Boston ; 
and, on the 21st, writes to his sister as follows : 

" The scenery in front, side, and rear, and all witliin, is 
unrivalled, except liy the charms of the dear old home of my 
mother and sister ; in short, it seems to me that no two spots 
combine so many charms as my eaidy and present homes ; and 
they impress me more fully now by my being so well as to enjoy 
not only natural scenery, but the social intercourse with loved 
ones, that more than compensate for anything I may have lost by 
sickness and suffering. I yesterday was on horseback nearly three 
hours, but did not ride more than ten miles ; and, in that distance, 
I went over some scenes that I felt unwilling to leave, especially 



c 



140 ' DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

some of the old works on and near Dorcliester Heights , for they 
appeared more interesting than ever before, from the circumstance 
of your showing me that mass of original letters from Washing- 
ton, Hancock, Samuel Adams, and various other revolutionary 
characters, to General Ward ; some of them touching the occupa- 
tion of these heights sixty years ago, and some of them alluding 
to scenes which have scarcely been noticed in the puljlished 
histories of those days. All go to show, however, the whole souls 
of those men to have been engaged in their work ; and, farther, how 
vain it is for us of this day, who are ambitious of distinction, to 
found it on any other basis than ujjrightness of character, purity 
of life, and the active performance of all those duties included in 
' the doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly.' How 
few of us remember this ! I hardly know when I have been more 
forcibly impressed with a plain truth than I was yesterday, while 
sitting alone on horseback, on the top of the redoubt on Dorchester 
Heights, and the considerations of the past, the present, and the 
future, were the subject of my thoughts, connecting the men of 
those days with the present, and the men of these days with the 
future. The evidence is irresistible, that there is a downhill 
tendency in the character of the people, which, in sixty years 
more, will make us more corrupt than any other enlightened 
nation so young as ours, unless we are checked by adversity and 
suffering. But this is not what I intended to write about, so I 
will go to something else. The old revolutionary documents, 
memorials of our father, never appeared to me so interesting as 
now ; and tliose I now return to you will be carefully preserved, 
and such others as you may find, added to them. I would give a 
great sum of money, if by it I could get all the documents I 
used to see when I was a child, and which we thought of so little 
value that we did not preserve them with that care which should 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 141 

have been used iu a family wbicli cherishes such deep feelings of 
respect and aifection for parents." 

The year 1837 will be remembered as one of great 
pecuniary embarrassment and distress in the commer- 
cial world. Mr. Lawrence alhtdes to it as follows, on 
May 13 : 

" The violent pecuniary re^'ulsion that has been anticipated for 
more tlian a ^-car has at length overtaken this country, and is 
more severe than our worst fears. In addition to the failure of 
people to pay their deljts, in all sections of the country, for the 
last two months, the banks, from Baltimore to Boston, and 
probably throughout the Union, as fast as the intelligence spreads, 
have suspended specie payment, and will not j^robalily resume 
again very soon." 

On December IT of the same year, he writes to his 
mother as follows : 

" This day completes thirty years since my commencing 
business, with the hope of acquiring no very definite amount of 
property, or having in my mind any anticipation of ever enjoying 
a tithe of that consideration my fiiends and the public are disposed 
to award me at this time. In looking back to that period, and 
reviewing the events as they come along, I can see the good hand 
of God in all my experience; and acknowledge, with deep 
humiliation, my want of gratitude and proper veturn for all his 
mercies. May each day I live impress me more deeply with a 
sense of duty, and find me better prepared to answer his call, and 
account for my stewardship ! The changes in our family have 
been perhaps no greater than usual in other famihes in that 



142 DIARY AND CORRESPONDEXCE. 

period, excepting in the matter of the eminent success that ha? 
attended our efforts of a worldly nature. This worldly success is 
the great cause of our danger in its uses, and may prove a snare, 
unless we strive to keep constantly in mind, that to whom much 
is given, of him Avill much be required. I feel my own deficien- 
cies, and lament them ; but am encouraged and rewarded by the 
enjoyment, in a high degree, of all my well-meant efforts for the 
good of those around me. Li short, I feel as though I can still 
do a little to advance the cause of human happiness while I 
remain here. My ma.xini is, that I ought to ' work while the day 
lasts ; for the night of death will soon overtake me, when I can 
no more work.' I continue to mend in strength, and feel at times 
the buoyancy of early days. It is now raining in torrents, keep- 
ing us all within doors. I have been at work with gimblet, saw, 
fore-plane, and hammer, thus securing a good share of exercise 
■without leaving my chamber." 

" Jaintai-y 1, 1838. — Bless the Lord, O my soul ! and forget 
not all his lienefits ; for he has restored my life twice during the 
past year, when I was apparently dead, and has permitted me to 
live, and see and enjoy much, and has surrounded me with bless- 
ings that call for thankfulness. The possession of my mind, the 
intercourse with beloved friends, the opportunity of performing 
some labor as his steward (although imperfectly done), all call 
upon me for thanksgiving and praise. The violent revulsion in 
the business of the country during the past year has been ruinous 
to many : but, so far as my own interests are concerned, has been 
less than I anticipated. My property remains much as it was a 
year ago. Something beyond my income has been disposed of; 
and I have no debts against me, either as a partner in the firm or 
individually. Everything is in a better form for settlement than 



DIAllY AND CORRKSPOXDENCE. 143 

at any former period, and I hope to feel ready to depart whenever 
called." 

The following is copied from an acconnt-liook, pre- 
sented at the comnioncement of the year to his young- 
est son, then twelve years of age : 

" My dear Son : I give you this little book, that you may 
write in it how much money you receive, and how you use it. It 
is of mucli importance, in forming your early character, to have 
correct habits, and a strict regard to truth in all j-ou do. For 
this purpose, I advise you never to cheat yourself by making a 
false entry in this book. If you spend money for an object you 
would not willingly have known, you will be more likely to avoid 
doing the same thing again if you call it by its right name here, 
remembering always that there is One who cannot be deceived, 
and that He requires his children to render an account of all 
their doings at last. I pray God so to guide and direct you that, 
when your .stewardship here is ended, he may say to you that the 
talents intrusted to your care have been faithfully employed. 

" Your affectionate father, A. L." 

In transmitting to his sister a letter received from 
Baltimore, from a mutual friend, he writes, on March 
12, in a postscript : 

" This morning seems almost like a foretaste of heaven. The 
sun shines briglit, the air is soft ; I am comfortable, and expect a 
pleasant drive in the neighboi-hood. It is indeed brilliant, beau- 
tiful, and interesting to me, beyond any former experience of my 
life. I am the liajipiest man alive, and yet would willingly 



144 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

exchange worlds this clay, if it be the good pleasure of our best 
Friend and Father in heaven." 

The extract quoted above will give an idea of that 
state of mind in which Mr. Lawrence was often found 
by his friends, and which he unceasingly strove to 
cultivate. He could not always exult in the same 
buoyant and almost rapturous feelings here expressed ; 
for, with his feeble frame and extreme susceptibility 
to outward influences, to believe such was the case 
would be to suppose him more than mortal. The 
willingness to exchange worlds was, however, a con- 
stant frame of mind ; and the daily probability of 
such an event he always kept in view. The work of 
each day was performed with the feeling that it might 
be his last ; and there is, throughout his correspond- 
ence and diary, frequent allusion to the uncertain 
tenure by which he held life, and his determination 
to work while the day lasted. If a matter was to be 
attended to, of great or little importance, whether the 
founding a professorship, signing a will, or paying a 
household bill, all was done at the earliest moment, 
Avith the habitual remark, "I may not be here 
to-morrow to do it." 

In the same cheerful spirit, he writes to his son a 
few days after his marriage, and then on a journey to 
Virginia : 

" The whole scene here on Thursday last Avas so delightful 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 145 

that I hardly knew whether I was on the earth, or floating 
between earth and heaven. I have been exalted ever since, and 
the group of happy friends will be a sunny spot in your no less 
than in their remembrance." 

To his sister he writes, Dec. 22 : 

"It is thirty-one years this week since I commenced business 
on my own account, and the prospects were as gloomy at that 
period for its successful pursuit as at any time since ; but I never 
had any doubt or misgiving as to my success, for I then had no 
more wants than my means would justify. The habits then 
formed, and since confirmed and strengthened by use, have been 
the foundation of my good name, good fortune, and present happy 
condition. At that time (when you know I used to visit you as 
often as I could, by riding in the night until I sometimes 
encroached upon the earliest hour of the Sabbath before reaching 
my beloved home, to be at my business at the dawn of day on 
^Monday morning), my gains were more than my expenses; thus 
strengthening and encouraging me in the steady pursuit of those 
objects I had in view as a beginner. From that time to this, I 
am not aware of ever desiring or acquiring any gi-eat amount by 
a single operation, or of taking any part of the property of any 
other man and mingling it with my own, where I had the legal 
right to do so. I have had such uniform success as to make my 
fidelity a matter of deep concern to myself; and my prayer to 
God is, that I may be found to have acted a uniform part, and 
receive the joyful ' Well done,' which is substantial wealth, that 
no man can take away. If my experience could be made avail- 
able by my successors, I sometimes feel that it would be a 
guaranty that they would keep in the best path ; but, as they are 
to be fitted by discipline for the journey, it is perhaps a vain thing 
19 



146 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

for me to allow any doubts to I'est upon my mind that that disci- 
pline is not for their highest good. The pleasures of memory 
have never been more highly enjoyed than during the period of 
my last sickness. They have solaced my pains, and supported me 
through numerous fainting fits, growing out of the surgical treat- 
ment I have endured. I would ask you, my dear sister, if a 
merciful Parent has not stretched forth his hand almost visibly to 
support me through this trying scene, by scattering in my path 
these flowers and fruits so freely as almost to make me forget 
bodily pains ; and bless him for what is past, and trust that what 
is future will be the means of making me a better man." 

'■'■ Decemher 31, 1838. — The business of the year now brought 
to a close has been unexpectedly productive, and the prospects 
of continued success are very flattering. At the commencement 
of the year, my life seemed a flickering light, with small hope of 
its continuance through the wibter ; but a merciful Providence 
has permitted a brighter view, and my happiness through the 
year has been superior to that of any year of my life." 

After euumei'ating some domestic events wliich had 
contributed to this result, he adds : 

" My own health is so fir restored as to allow me the enjoy- 
ment of everything around me in perfection. May God in mercy 
keep me mindful of my duties, and prepared to surrender my 
accoiint at any moment he may call me hence ! " 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

BROTHER'S DEATH. — LETTERS. — GIFTS. — LETTERS. — DIARY. — AP- 
PLICANTS FOR AID. — REFLECTIONS. — LETTER FROM REV DR. 
STONE. — DIARY. 

If, at the close of the last year, Mr. Lawrence could 
say that "his happiness had been superior to that of 
any year of his life," it could not he said that its 
successor was one of unmingled brightness. The un- 
broken band of brothers who had marched thus faf 
hand in hand, united by a common bond of sympathy 
and affection, sustaining each other in all trials, and 
rejoicing together in their common prosperity, was 
about to be sundered. Since their earliest days, they 
had had but one interest, and, residing near each other 
after leaving their early home, had been in the habit 
of most constant and intimate intercourse. ISIany of 
their friends will well remember seeing four, and some- 
times five, of them, on Sunday evening, after service, 
walking together abreast, arm in arm ; and have been 
tempted to exclaim, "Behold how good and pleasant 
a thing it is for brethren to dwell together in unity." 
They had more than obeyed their father's injunction 
"not to fall out by the way, for a three-fold cord is not 

147 



148 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

quickly broken." With them, it had been a five-fold 
cord ; and, amidst all the perplexities of business, the 
management of important interests, and the various 
vicissitudes of domestic life, no strand had been broken 
until severed by the ruthless hand of death. The 
eldest brother, Luther, had been educated at Harvard 
College ; had studied law with the Hon. Timothy 
Bigelow, then of Groton, afterwards of Medford, whose 
sister he subsequently married ; and had commenced 
the practice of his profession in his native town. 
There he met with good success, and, for many years, 
represented the town in the House of Representatives, 
of which he was chosen Speaker for the session of 
1821 and 1822. He was induced by his brothers, who 
had become largely interested in the new town of 
Lowell, to remove thither ; and he accordingly took up 
his residence there in 1831, having accepted the presi- 
dency of the bank which had been lately established. 
In 1838, he had been elected Mayor of the city, and 
had given himself up to the pressing duties incident to 
the office in a new and growing community. While 
holding this office, he, on the 17th of April, 1839, 
accompanied an old friend and connection, who was on 
a visit at Lowell, to inspect the works of the Middle- 
sex Manufacturing Company, recently erected by 
his brothers. In passing rapidly through one of the 
rooms, he made a misstep, and was precipitated many 
feet into a wheel-pit, causing almost instant death. 



DIARY AND CORRESl'ONDENCE. 149 

This sad event was deeply felt by Mr. Lawrence, as 
well as by all who knew and appreciated the character 
of the deceased. In a letter to his sisters, dated April 
22, he says : 

" I should have addressed a word of comfort to you before 
this. That he should be taken, and I left, is beyond my ken, 
and is a mystery which will be cleared up hereafter. I do, how- 
ever, know now that all is right, and better ordered than we 
could have done it. We must submit, and shovld be resigned. 
Brother L.'s death may, perhaps, be more efficient in instructing 
us in the path of duty than would have been his life ; and the 
whole community around is admonished hy this event in a way 
that I have rarely seen so marked. The homage to his character 
is a legacy to his children of more value than all the gold of the 
mint. Shall we, then, repine at his separation from us ? Surely 
not. He has fulfilled his mission, and is taken home, with all his 
powers fresh and perfect, and with the character of having used 
these powers for the best and highest good of all around him. 
We shall all soon be called away, and should make his departure 
the signal to be also ready. This is the anniversary of my birth, 
and has been marked by many circumstances of peculiar interest." 

On the same date, he writes to a connection, who 
was about to take possession of his house on that day 
for the first time after his marriage : 

" I intended speaking a word in your ear before your leaving 
us for your own fireside and home, but have concluded to take 
this mode of doing it ; and it is to saj-, that you possess a jewel in 
your wife, above price, which should be worn in such an atmos- 



150 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

phere as ■will increase its purity and value the longer you possess 
it : and that is around the family altar. That you intend to 
establish it, I have no doul)t; but, as to the precise time, you 
may not be fixed. What time so good as the present time, when 
the first evening of possession of this paradise on earth (a house 
and home of your own with such a wife), to make that offering to 
the Father of mercies which ascends to his throne as sweet 
incense from his children ? It is the nutriment and efficient pro- 
ducing power of the best principles and the best fruits of our 
nature. Be wise in time, and strive to secure these, that you 
may go on from one degree to another, until you shall have 
reached our Father's house, and shall hear the cheering ' Well 
done ! ' promised to such as have used their talents without 
abusing them. My blessing attend you ! " 

(to niS DAUGHTER.) 

" Monday evening. 

"Dear S. : The admonition of tlie last week comes home to me 
in a way not to be neglected, and I hope to keep in mind that, in 
my best days, I am as likely to be called off, as in these days of 
anxious care, when pressed down with pain and weakness, and 
surrounded by those dear ones who look upon every emotion with 
deep solicitude. On comparing myself now with myself a year 
as;o, I have much to animate and cheer in the increased strength 
of body and renewed powers, by which I can enjoy life ; but I 
have also much to speak to the heart, and to tell me to be con- 
stantly ready to be called off without previous note of prepara- 
tion. May I never lose sight, for a single hour, of the tenure Iiy 
which I hold the privilege of seeing the dear ones settled so 
happily ! It is more than I had reason to anticipate. 

" May you, dear child, never lose sight of the end for which 
your privileges are made so ample, nor forego the happiness of 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 151 

doing the best in your power at every stage of your journey, so 
that whenever you may be called hence, you may feel that you 
are ready, and that your work is done. It will not do for me to 
rely upon my every-day firmness to secure me agamst attacks of 
the kind last experienced. I do most fervently desire to be kept 
in mind of my exposure, and never for an hour forget that it may 
be my last." 

Several passages iu Mr. Lawrence's letters Avill show 
the attachment which he felt towards the place of his 
birth, connected as it was with so many associations 
and memories of the past. The old house, with the 
great elm in front and its welcome shade ; the green 
meadow, stretching for a mile along a gentle declivity 
to the river ; the range of mountains in the west, just 
distant enough to afford that tinge of blue which adds 
an indescribable charm to every landscape ; the grace- 
ful undulations of the hills on the east, with the quiet 
village sleeping at their base, all seemed in his mind so 
associated with the loved inmates of his early home, 
that he ever contemplated the picture with delight. 

On June 4, in a letter to his sisters, he writes : 

" R. leaves us this morning, on his way to the old homestead, 
which, to my mind's eye, has all the charms of the most lovely 
associations of early days, with all the real beauty of those splen- 
did descriptions given by the prophets of the holy city. I would 
earnestly impress all my children with a deep sense of the beauty 
and benefit of cherishing and cultivating a respect and afiectiou 



152 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENTE. 

for this dear spot, ami fiir tliose more dear objects that have 
served to make it what it really is to all us children." 

In a letter to his son, whose visit is alluded to 
above, he says : 

" The beautiful scenery from Gibbet Hill, in Groton, and from 
the road from our old mansion south for a mile, towards the 
Wachusett and the Monadnock Mountains, comes next, in point of 
beauty, to my taste, to these views around the Boston Common. 
Be careful to do all things as you will wish you had done, that 
you may look back upon this visit with pleasure, and forward to 
another visit with increased relish. Remember that in the best 
performance of all your duties lies the highest enjoyment of all 
your pleasures. Those pleasures that flow from plans and doings 
that your conscience condemns are to be shunned as the net of 
the wicked one. When once entangled, the desire and effort to 
be released grow weaker, till, at length, conscience is put asleep, 
and the sleep of death comes over the soul. Be careful, there- 
fore, to avoid evil, and not only so, but to avoid all appearance 
of evil. In this way, you will grow up with principles and 
fixed habits that will secure you against the ills of life, and 
supply a foret«vste of the enjoyments of a better life to come." 

During a visit which he made to his early home a 
few months subsequent to the date of the preceding 
extract, he writes to his daughter : 

" I was very tired on arriving here last evening, but a quiet 
sleep has brought me into my best state. 

" This morning has allowed me to ride for two hours, and I 
have enjoyed everything and everybody here to the utmost. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 153 

Groton is lieautiful beyond any other place I have ever seen ; but 

perhaps I am in the situation of old Mr. , whose opinion of 

his wife's beauty, when questioned of its accuracy, was justified 
by the declaration that the person must have his eyes to look 
through. 

" The whole country is full of charms ; nothing seems wanting 
to impress upon the heart the goodness of that Parent who seeks 
by all means to bring us nearer to himself 

" This visit has been full of interest, and it is a source of 
unfeigned thanksgiving that it has been permitted to me." 

Mr. Lawrence always took great delight in sending 
to friends and relatives, little and great, mementoes of 
his affection ; and a great deal of time was spent in 
penning and reading the letters and notes which such 
transactions called forth. He had a rare faculty of 
adapting his gift to the peculiar necessities or tastes 
of the recipient ; and, whether the matter treated of 
was a check for thousands or a houquet of flowers, 
equal pleasure seemed to he given and received. In 
sending a gift of the former description, he notices the 
commencement of the year 1840 as follows : 

" January 1. 
" Dear S. : W. will prize the enclosed more highly from your 
hand ; for he will have proof that a good wife brings many bless- 
ings, that he never would know the value of but for you. May 
you experience many returns of the 'new year,' and each more 

happy than the past ! " 
20 



154 DIART AND CORRES-PONDENCE. 

In a letter to his second son, then on a visit to 
Europe, he writes, under date of March 5, 1840 : 

" We are all curious to know what impressions your visit to 
France and Italy produces, and still more what impressions a 
careful overlooking of our fatherland makes upon you. There is 
much food for reflection, and abundant material for the exercise 
of your powers of observation, in every league of the ^fasl- 
anchored isle,' especially in the scenes so beautifully portrayed in 
many of the books we have access to. In fact. I have an exten- 
sive collection of materials to renew your travels and observa- 
tions, and shall value them more highly when you point out this 
or that seat or castle or abbey, which has arrested your notice. 
But the best scenes will be those in which the living souls of the 
present day are engaged. The habits and tastes of the people of 
England have doubtless much changed since the Spectator days ; 
but, in many important particulars, I should hope they had not. 
Some thirty jems ago. I had a good specimen of the feelings and 
principles of a great variety of people, embracing almost all 
classes, from the year 1774 to 1776, in a multitude of letters 
that had accumulated in the post-office in this town, under 
Tuthill Hubbart. After his death, his house was pulled down ; 
and, among the strange things found in it. were bushels of letters, 
of which I was permitted to take what I pleased. These letters 
showed a deeper religious feeling in the writers of those days, 
from England, Ireland, and Scotland, than I have seen in any 
miscellaneous collections of a later date. If that deep-toned 
piety which pervaded them has not been extinguished by the 
Jacobinism and freethinking of later days, happy for the people 
and the government ! But I fear it has, in some great measure, 
been blotted out or obscured, as there seems to be a spirit of 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 155 

reckless adventure in politics and religion not contemplated 
seventy years ago. How far our experience in self-govemiQent 
in this country is going to advance the cause of good govern- 
ment, and the ultimate happiness of man, is yet a problem. Our 
principles are of the most elevating character ; our practices under 
them, of the most debasing; and, if we continue in this way 
another generation, there will not be virtue enough in active use 
to save the forms of our government. We may hope that a better 
heart may be given us." 

In a letter to his son-in-law, the Rev. Charles Mason, 
Avho was at that time in company with his own son on 
a visit to England, he writes on June 28th, 1840 : 

"I intended to defer writing until to-morrow morning; but the 
beauty of the western scenery and sunset is so striking, that I am 
strongly impelled to tell you that, much as you see, and highly 
as you enjoy the scenes of old England, there is nothing there 
more beautiful and sublime than this very scene from my chamber 
windows. It seems as though nature never wa.s so beautifully 
dressed at this time of the year as at present. The season has 
been unusually favorable for the foliage, fruits, and flowers ; and 
all around bears evidence of that goodness that never rests, and in 
my own person I feel that I am enjoying in a month what ought 
to content me for a year." 

The foregoing extract is selected from among many 
others of a similar nature, as an illustration of Mr. 
Lawrence's appreciation of the beauties of natural 
scenery. 



156 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

Towards the close of the day, his favorite seat was 
at a window, from which he coukl witness the glories 
of the setting snu, and, still later, the f;iding beauties 
of the twilight. Nature to him was no sealed volume ; 
and with her, in all her phases, he loved to commune. 

The gorgeous hues of the western sky, the chang- 
ing tints of the autumnal foliage, and the smiling 
features of the landscape, were in his mind typical 
of the more resplendent beauties of the future world. 
He writes : 

" To-day is one of tliose holy spring days which make us feel 
that, with right principles and conduct, we may enjoy a foretaste 
of that beautiful home we all lonjr for. I have been over the 
Roxbury and Dorchester hills, which are a transcript of the 
beautiful scenery ai'ound Jerusalem. ]\Iount Zion seemed before 
me, and by stretching my arms, I could almost fly upon its sides." 

He loved to think that the spirits of the departed 
may be permitted to hover around, and minister to those 
whom they have once loved on earth ; and sometimes, 
as he viewed nature in her softer moods, he would 
imagine himself as holding communion with former 
cherished objects of affection. He writes to a friend : 

"Dear S. and R. speak in words without sounds, through every 
breeze and in every flower, and in the fragrance of every perfume 
from the field or the trees." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 157 

And asrain : 



•'o'^ 



" Is there anything in Scripture to discourage the belief that 
the spirits of departed friends are still ministering spirits to such 
as are left here, and tliat a recognition and reiinion will follow 
when we are called off? I believe fully in this happy reiinion ; 
and it is, next to the example of the beloved, the most animating 
feeling that prompts me through this wearisome journey." 

To a friend who had invited him to pay her a visit at 
her residence in the country, he writes : 

" N says I am like a child in the matter of the visit, and 

w"0uld be as much disappointed if it should not be accomplished ; 
and I must admit that I am guilty of this weakness. There are 
so many loved ones on the old spot, so many lessons to be reviewed, 
and so many friends ' passed on,' whose spirits surround and fill 
the place with the peculiar halo and charm of the good angels 
(those ministering spirits in whose company we may ever find 
comfort, if we will think so). I say, with all these things, can I 
be blamed for bemg a child in this matter ? You will all say No, 
and will love me the better for it." 

On the anniversary of his commencing his business, 
Dec. 17, Mr. Lawrence, as usual, reviews Ms past life 
and mercies, and adds : 

" My daily aspirations are for wisdom and integrity to do what 
is required of me ; but the excuses for omissions, and the 
hidden promptings of pride or selfishness in the sins of com- 
mission, take away all confidence that all is done as it should be. 



158 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

I am in the enjoyment of as much as belongs to our condition 
here. Wife, children, and friends, those three little blessings that 
•were spared to us after the fall, impart enjoyment that makes my 
home as near a heaven on earth as is allowed to mortals. 

" Dec. 23. — This morning has been clear and beautiful, and I 
have enjoyed it highly. Have been sleigh-riding with Chancellor 
Kent. Went over to Bunker Hill Monument, and around by the 
river-side to Charlestown Neck, and had a regular old-fashioned 
talk ■with him. He gave me an account of the scenes which 
occurred where he was studying, in Connecticut, when the news 
came of the Lexington fight. As we parted, he promised to come 
again in the spring, take another ride, and resume the conversation. 
He leaves for New York at three o'clock, and is as bright and 
lively as a boy, though seventy-eight years old. The old gentle- 
man attends to all his own affairs, had walked around the city this 
morning some miles, been to the Providence Railroad Depot for his 
ticket, overlooked divers bookstores, and so forth. He is very 
interesting, and has all the simplicity of a child." 

About this time, also, Mr. Lawrence seems to have 
had pleasant intercourse with the Chevalier Hulsemann, 
the Austrian Minister, so well known by his corres- 
pondence with Mr. Webster when the latter was 
Secretary of State. The minister was on a visit to 
Boston, and, from the correspondence which ensued, 
seems to have conceived a high regard for Mr. 
Lawrence, expressed in very kind and courteous 
terms ; and this regard seems to have been fully 
reciprocated. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE, 159 

"April i, 1841. — S. N., of T., an apprentice on board the 
United States ship ' Columbus,' in this harlaor, thirteen years old, 
■whom I picked up intoxicated in Beacon-street a month ago, and 
to whom I gave some books, with request to call and see me when 
on shore, came to-day, and appears very well. Gave him a 
Testament and some good counsel. 

" Jtaie 6. — G. M. culled to sell a lot of sermons called the 

, which he said he caused to be published to do good ; he 

repeated it so often that I doubted him. He seems to me a 

wooden nutmeg fellow, although he has the Rev. Mr. 's 

certificate." 

The preceding entry is given here merely as a 
sample of many such which are found in Mr. Law- 
rence's diary. Few who have not had the like 
experience can estimate the annoyance to which his 
reputation for benevolence and well-doing subjected 
him, in the shape of applications for aid in every 
imaginable form. His perceptions were naturally 
acute ; and a long experience and intercourse with men 
enabled him to form, at a single glance, a pretty fair 
estimate of the merits of the applicant. He may 
sometimes have judged precipitately, and perhaps 
harshly ; but, when he discovered that he had done so, 
no one could have been more ready to confess Ms fault 
and make reparation. A few years after this time, the 
annoyance became so serious, from the number and 
character of the applicants, that he felt obliged, on 
account of ill-health, to deny himself to all, unless 
personally known to him, or accredited by some one 



160 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

in whose statement he had confidence. Further than 
this, he was confirmed in his decision by actual abuse 
which had occasionally been administered to him by 
disappointed candidates for charitable aid. lie kept 
upon his table a small memorandum-book, in Avhich 
he recorded the names of those who sought aid, with 
their business, and often their age, the age and number 
of their children, sometimes facts in their past history, 
and any other information which could enable him to 
form an opinion of their claim upon him for assistance. 
He sometimes indulges also in somewhat quaint remarks 
respecting those who apply, or the manner in which 
they have presented their application. 

To the Rev. Robert TurnbuU, a Baptist clergyman 
then settled in Boston, and who had sent to Mr. Law- 
rence a copy of his work entitled " Claims of Jesus," 
he writes under date of Nov. 2 : 

" Rev. and dear Sir : I thank you for the little volume so 
kindly presented, and deem it the duty of all the friends of the 
Saviour to do what they can to stop the flood of infidelity and 
atheism that threatens such waste and devastation among us. 
However we may seem to be, I trust many may he found, in the 
ranks of my Unitarian friends, who admit the ' claims of Jesus ' 
in their most elevated character, and who repudiate the doctrine 
of those who sink him to the level of a mere human teacher, as 
subversive of his authority and as nullifying his teachings. We 
take the record, and what is clearly declared ; we do not go 
behind, even though we do not clearly comprehend it. It gives 



DIARY AND C(JRBESP0NDENCE. 161 

me pleasure to learn you are so Tvell recovered from the injury 
you received from the overturn of your carriage near my house. 
" With great respect, believe me truly yours, A. L." 

" January. 1842. — This year opens ^vith renewed calls upon 
me to bless God for his mercies througliout its course. My 
family circle has not been broken by the death of any one of our 
Tvhole number, and my own health has been better for the last 
half-year than for five years before. I have not had occasion to 
call a physician through the year. My brothers A. and W. have 
been dangerously sick, but are happily recovered ; and both feel, 
I believe, that their hold on life is not as firm as they have felt it 
to be in former years. My dear children are growing up around 
me to bless and comfort me ; and all I need is a right understand- 
ing of my duties, and a sincere purpose to ftdfil them. I hope to 
have the will to continue them in as faithful a maimer as hereto- 
fore, to say the least." 

Among the traits in Mr. Lawrence'.? character was 
that enlarged spirit of Christian feeling Avhich enabled 
him to appreciate goodness in others, Avithout refer- 
ence to sect or denomination. This spirit of universal 
brotherhood was not in him a matter of mere theory, 
Imt was carried out in the practice of daily life, and 
was the means of cementing many and lasting friend- 
ships, especially among the clergy of various denomi- 
nations around him. It may not be uninteresting in 
future years, for those now in childhood, for whom this 
volume has been prepared, to be reminded of the strong 
feeling of sympathy and affection which their grand- 

21 



162 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

father entertained for the Rev. John S. Stone, D.D., 
once the Rector of St. Paul's Church, in Boston, and 
now the Rector of St. Paul's, in Brookline, Mass. The 
following is an extract from a letter written by that 
gentleman from Brooklyn, N. Y., during the year 1842, 
with a memorandum endorsed by Mr. Lawrence, dated 
October, 1847, in which he says : 

" This letter was very interesting to me -when received. I kept 
it in my pocket-book with one from Judge Story, which he had 

requested me to keep for my chikben. While son was in 

Europe, I did not e.xpect to Uve but a short time, and sent him 
the two letters, as the proper person to keep them for the use of 
his children." 

The letter commences by strong expressions of 
affection and regard, over which Mr. Lawrence's 
modesty had induced him to paste a slip of paper, 
endorsed as follows : ' ' Personal matters between the 
writer and myself, covered up here, and not to be read 
by any of the friends to whom I may show this letter." 
The letter continues as follows : 

"Shall I ever forget the happy moments, hours, days, I may 
say weeks, which I have spent in riding with you, and chatting, 
as we rode, of all things as we passed them, till I seemed to 
myself to be living in the by-gone days of Boston and its neigh- 
borhood ; and all its old families, houses, names, and anecdotes, 
became as familiar to my mind as the stories of my boyhood ? 
Can I forget it all ? I trow not. These things are all blended 



DIARY AND COKRESPONDEXCE. 1C3 

in with the beautiful scenery through which we used to ride, and 
associated with those graver lessons and reflections which you 
used to give me ; insomuch that the picture which my memory 
retains of nature, society, history, and feeling, truth, friendship, 
and religion, and in which Boston and the living friends there are 
comprehended, has become imperishable. It never can fade out 
of my mind. It is a picture in which man has done much, 
friendsliip more, religion most, and God all ; for religion is his, 
and friendship is from him, and man is his creature, and the green 
earth and glorious heavens are his home. There are many, very 
many, objects in this picture, which I contemplate with special 
delight ; and few which give me pain, or which I would not have 
had there, had the whole ordering of its composition been left to 
me. Indeed, had this whole ordering been left to me, it may 
well be doubted whether, as a whole, it would have contained 
half of the beautiful and blessed things which it now contains. 
Taking it as it is, therefore, I am well content to receive it, hang 
it up in tlie choicest apartment of my memory, and keep it clean 
and in good order for use." * * * 

As an illustration of the pleasant intercourse alluded 
to above, among Mr. Lawrence's papers is found 
another most friendly letter from the Rev. Henry- 
Ware, jun., dated a few days afterwards, with the 
following endorsement : 

"I went on Friday to Mr. Ware's house, and had a free, ftill, 
and deeply-interesting conversation upon the appointment of his 
successor ; and was delighted to find him with the same views I 
have upon the necessity of removing the theological department 
from Cambridge." 



164 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

Dec. 2, Mr. Lawrence alludes to tlie probability of 
his own death taking place in the manner in which it 
actually occurred ten years afterwards, as follows : 

" Yesterday I was very well, and have been so for some time 
past. Experienced a severe ill turn this mornmg at five o'clock, 
more so than for years. This check brings me back to the reflec- 
tion that, when I feel the best, I am most likely to experience 
one of my ill turns ; some one of which will probably end my 
journey in this life. God grant me due preparation for the next ! " 



CHAPTER XIX. 

REFLECTIONS. — LETTERS. — ACCOUNT OF EFFORTS TO COMPLETE 
BUNKER HILL MONUMENT. 

In the memorandum-book of property for 1843 is 
found the usual estimate and list of expenditures ; 
after which Mr. Lawrence writes as follows : 

" My outlay for other objects than my ovm family, for the last 

fourteen years, has been dollars, which sum I esteem better 

invested than if in bond and mortgage in the city ; and I have 
reason to believe many have been comforted and assisted by it, 
and its influence will be good on those who follow me. God grant 
me grace to be faithful to my trust ! " 

To Hon. R. C. Winthx-op, Member of Congress, at 
Wahington, enclosing a letter from a young colored man : 

" Boston, Feb. 15, 1843. 
"Dear Sir: This young man, as you will observe by his 
style, is well educated ; and the circumstances he states, I have 
no doubt, are true. He applied to me, about two years since, for 
employment in writing or other business, to obtain means for 
further education ; and I interested myself to secure to him what 
was required. A few months since, he started from here to go to 
Jamaica, to commence the practice of law, and was supplied by 

165 



166 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

those who had taken an interest in him with a library suited to 
his wants. He received his early education in Indiana ; and his 
parents were once slaves. He is a handsome colored fellow, 
better-mannered, better-looking, and more to be respected, than 
many young gentlemen who move in the higher walks of life, 
either in Carolina or Massachusetts. Now, I should like to know, 
if he should be admitted as an attorney to practice in our courts, 
and should take passage for Jamaica, and put into Charleston, 
would he be imprisoned, as is now the practice in regard to our 
black sailors ? I feel a much stronger desire to see your report 
upon this subject of imprisoning our colored people, after the 
unfair course taken by the majority of your house to smother it ; 
and I hope still to see it in print before the adjournment. I 
would further remark, that N. T. is a member of Grace Church 
in this city, I believe, under the care of Rev. T. M. Clark ; and 
would, doubtless, bear affliction, if it should ever be his fortune to 
be afflicted by being impi'isoned because his skin is dark, with a 
spirit becoming his profession. With great respect and esteem, 
believe me very truly yours, Ajios Lawrexce." 

(to his sister.) 

" Boston, April 19, 1843. 
"Dear Sister M. : When I heard a gun this morning, I was 
immediately transported back in imagination to the 19th of April, 
1775, when our grandmother retreated from her house on the 
roadside in Concord, with her family, to keep out of the way of 
the ' regulars ; ' and that day and its scenes, as described, came 
back upon me with a force which kept me awake in considering 
whether the gun was fired to recall the facts to the people of this 
day ; and, if recalled, whether we can profit l)y the events which 
followed. I found, however, on receiving my newspapers, that the 
gun was not for commemoration of Lexington and Concord, but 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 167 

to announce the arrival of the British steamer from Liverpool. 
The nevfs by this steamer is of no more than common interest ; 
and the intercourse is now so easy and rapid, that the interest felt 
to learn what is passing in Europe is not much greater than we 
used to feel on Call's stage-coach arriving at Groton from Boston 
once a week, fifty years ago. The changes within my own recollec- 
tion are such as almost to make me distrust my own senses ; and 
many of the changes are at the cost of much good. The down- 
hill tendency in the standard of character is a bad sign, and 
threatens the prostration of our political fabric. Built as it is on 
the virtue and intelligence of the people, every waste of these 
endangers the stability of the whole structure." 

''April 24. — I resume, though not in the same train of 
thought, which is slept off. My birth-day has passed since then ; 
and I am now in my fifty-eighth year. This is the birth-day of 
our father, who would have been eighty-nine if living ; and this 
week on Saturday will also complete thirty-si.x years since I left 
home to spend a few months in this city, preparatory to my com- 
mencing business in Groton. Here I have continued ; and the 
consequences to our family seem to liave stamped upon us such 
marks as make us objects of influence, for good or evil, to a much 
greater extent than if I had returned to commence my business 
career in my native town. I view in this a hand pointing 
upward, — ' Seek me and ye shall find,' — and a caution to us to 
use without abusing the good things intrusted to us. How hard 
it is for those in prosperity to bring home to their feelings their 
dependence, their abuse of their privileges, their desires for objects 
wholly disproportionate to their value, their anxiety about trifles, 
while they are so utterly careless and indifferent about those of 
the highest moment ! How we strive unceasingly to secure objects 
that can, at best, give us but a slight reward, and, in many cases, 



168 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

if attained to the full extent of our hopes, only serve to sharpen 
our appetite for more ; thus demonstrating the benevolence of our 
heavenly Father in removing these obstacles to our progress in the 
ways and works of godliness ! How important, then, for us to see 
a Father's hand in the disappointments, not less than in the 
success, of our plans ! I now speak practically of those anxieties 
which I feel and condemn myself for, in looking forward to the 
condition of my family. This is all wrong ; and I pray God to 
pardon me the want of faith this feeling implies. 

" I have thought much of your account of Mrs. N. going out, 
on the Sabbath after her husband's death, with her nine children. 
I remember her, and many others of my youthful schoolmates, 
with interest and regard. Please say so to her. And now, dear 
M., as the clouds seem thinner, I may hope to secure a little run, 
and shall take the post-office in my way ; so must bid you adieu." 

(to general .) 

" May 5, 1843. 
"My dear old General: Our anticipated drive to-day is 
not to be : the weather settles it that I must keep house ; and, to 
indemnify myself for the disappointment, will you allow me to 
feel that I have not gone too far in requesting you to receive the 
enclosed check ? I am spared here for some object, and do not 
feel that to hoard money is that object. While I am in the 
receipt of an income so ample, I find it sometimes troublesome to 
invest exactly to my mind. In the present case, the hope that 
you may, by using this, add something to your enjoyment, makes 
me feel that it is one of my best investments ; and for the reason 
that your proverbial good-will cannot refuse me such a boon, I 
have made this request. My heart yearns strongly toward the 
old-fashioned John Jay school in politics and morals : and, when I 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 169 

have an opportunity to minister in any way to one of the early 
members, it is a pleasure that sweetens my days as they pass." 

Oil the letter written in reply to the above, Mr. 
Lawrence has endorsed : 

" This letter from old General , now eighty-eight years 

old, and blind, is an aoknowledsrment of some little kindnesses I 
was enabled to render through the hand of Judge Story. It has 
afforded me more pleasure tlian it could have done either the 
Judge or the General. I am sure the good old man's feelings 
were gratified ; and I am thankful that I could comfort him." 

On the 17th of June, 1843, took place the celebra- 
tion in honor of the completion of the Bunker Hill 
Monuinent ; an event which was regarded with no 
ordinary emotions by Mr. Lawrence, after so many 
years of effort and expectation. His only regret was 
that the whole battle-field could not have been pre- 
served, and have remained, to use his own words, "a 
field-preacher for posterity." Eleven years before this, 
he had written to his sou in Europe : 

"If we be true to ourselves, our city is destined to be the 
Athens of America, and the hallowed spots in our neighborhood 
to be the olijects of interest throughout all future time. Tn this 
view, I would never permit a foot of the battle-field of Bunker Hill 
to be alienated ; but keep it for your great-great-grandchildren, as 
a legacy of patriotism worth more than their portion of it, if 
covered with gold by measure. Until you are older, I do not 
e.xpect you to feel as I do on this subject." 
22 



170 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

This would seem to be tlie proper place to mention 
a few facts in regard to Mr. Lawrence's agency in 
securing the completion of the monument. It has 
already been mentioned that he was one of the earliest 
friends of the project to erect a monument, and, in 
1825, had been placed upon the Standing Committee 
of Directors, with full powers to manage the affairs of 
the Association. In September, 1831, in a letter to 
his friend. Dr. J. C. Warren, who himself had been one 
of the warmest and most efficient advocates of the 
measure, he proposed to subscribe five thousand doUars, 
on condition that fifty thousand dollars should be raised 
within one year. The following passage occurs in that 
letter : 

" I think it inexpedient to allude to the sale of the land on 
Bunker Hill, as a resource for paying the debt, except in case of 
extreme necessity ; and, at this time, I should personally sooner 
vote to sell ten acres of the Common, in front of my house, to pay 
the city debt (of Boston), than vote to sell the ten acres on 
Bunker Hill, until it shall appear that our citizens will not 
contribute the means of saving: it." 

The proposition thus made was not responded to by 
the public* As early as December, 1830, he had 
made provision by his will, in case of his own death, 

* For a history of the Bunker Hill Jlonument, see an article in collec- 
tions of " Maine Historical Society," vol. iii., by Professor Packard, of 
Bowdoin College. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 171 

to secure the battle-fickl, liquidate the debts of the 
corporation, and complete the monument. These pro- 
visions were superseded by another will, executed 
April 1, 1833, after his health had failed, so as to 
forbid active participation in affairs. An extract from 
this document will show the views of the testator : 

"I am of opinion that the land owned by the Bunker Hill 
Monument Association, in Charlestown, ivill be of great value to 
posterity, if left as public ground. The spot is the most interest- 
ing in the country ; and it seems to me it is calculated to impress 
the feelings of those who come after us with gratitude to the 
people of this generation, if we preserve it to them. The whole 
field contains about fifteen acres ; and, in the hope of preserving 
it entire, either as the property of the State, of this city, or of 
any other competent body, and with the further view of insuring 
the completion of the monument, which now stands as a reproach 
to us, I have set apart a larger share of my property than would 
be necessary, had not the subject been presented to the public 
in such a manner as to discourage future attempts at raising the 
necessary funds by voluntary contribution." 

The amount thus devised for the monument, in case 
that amount should not be raised in other ways, was 
fifty thousand dollars. In June, 1832, before the 
annual meeting of the Bunker Hill Monument Associa- 
tion, the same offer of five thousand dollars, as first 
named, was renewed, with an urgent appeal for the 
preservation of the land, and completion of the monu- 
ment. A movement followed this appeal, but was not 



172 DIARY AND COKKESPONDENCE. 

successful. In April, 1833, Mr. Lawrence proposed to 
the Slassachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association to 
attempt the raising of filly thousand dollars, to he 
secured within three months, for completing the inou- 
unient and preserving the field ; accompanying the 
proposition was an oiler of five thousand dollars, or 
ten per cent, on any less sum that might be raised, as 
a donation to the Association. A public meeting was 
held in Fancuil Hall in response to this proposition, at 
which Hon. Edward Everett made a most powerful 
appeal, which produced so great an efiect upon his 
auditors that the object was considered as accom- 
plished. The efibrt was again unsuccessful. Eai'ly in 
1839, Mr. Lawrence addressed a letter to George Dar- 
racott, Esq., President of the Mechanic Association, in 
"which, after expressing regret that his feeble and pre- 
carious health would not permit him to make personal 
application to the citizens of Boston, he adds : 

" The next best thing I can do is to give money. The Monu- 
ment Association owes a debt. To discharge the debt, finish the 
momiment, surround it with a handsome iron fence, and otherwise 
ornament the ground as it deserves, will recjuire forty thousand 
dollars more than it now has. If the Association will collect 
thirty thousand dollars the present year, and pay off the debt, I 
■will give to the Charitable Mechanic Association ten thousand 
dollai-s to enable it to complete the work in a manner which oiu: 
fiithei's would have done, had they been here to tbrect it." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 173 

A further douiition of ten thousand dollars Avas made 
by Judah Ti^no, Esq., of New Orleans ; five thousand 
dollars were received from other sources ; and this, 
with thirty thousand dollars received at the great 
fair held in Quincy Hall, September, 1840, afforded 
the means of completing the monument according to 
the original design. Thus was consummated a work 
which liad been very near to ]\Ir. Lawrence's lieart, and 
which liail cost liini many a sleepless night, as well as 
days of toil and pcridexity. To his associates in this 
worlc too nuich credit cannot be awarded, discouraged, 
as they often were, by indifference, and even censure. 
Their names will be handed down for centuries, in con- 
nection with a monument, which, while it commemo- 
rates a nation's freedom, teaches also a pi'actical lesson 
of the perseverance and energy of man. 

The following is an extract from a newspaper pub- 
lislied about the time the monument was completed, 
giving an account of a festival held in commemoration 
of the event : 

" The president remarked, that, among the benefactors to 
Vihom the Association had been particularly indebted for the 
means of completing the monument, two, whose names were writ- 
ten on a scroll at the other end of the hall, were Amos Lawrence 
and Judah Touro, each of whom had made a donation of ten 
thousand dollars. He thought it proper they should be remem- 
bered at the festive board, and gave the following : 



174 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" Amos and Judah ! venerated names ! 
Patriarch and prophet press their equal claims ; 
Like generous coursers, running neck and neck, 
Each aids the work by giving it a check. 
Christian and Jew, they carry out a plan ; 
For, though of different faith, each is in heart 



V^" 



X 

.^' 



CHAPTER XX. 

INTEREST IN MOUNT AUBURN.— REV. DR. SHARP. — LETTER FROM 
BISHOP McILVAINE. — LETTER FROM JUDGE STORY. 

After the establishment of the cemetery at Mount 
Auburn, Mr. Lawrence had taken a deep interest in 
its progress, as well as in every plan for its gradual 
improvement and embellishment. In connection with 
his brothers, he had purchased a large space, which 
had been enclosed by a permanent granite wall and 
iron railing. To this spot he habitually resorted, con- 
taining, as it did, the remains of some of the dearest 
earthly objects of his affection, and destined, as it was, 
to be the final resting-place of not only himself, but of 
the various branches of his family. When this enclos- 
ure had been finished, it became an object with him to 
gather around him in death those whom he had loved 
and honored in life. In this way, he had been instru- 
mental in causing to be removed to a burial-lot 
adjoining his own the remains of the Rev. J. S. 
Buckminster, the former minister of Brattle-street 
Church ; and had also presented another lot to his 
friend and pastor, the Rev. Dr. Lothrop. Another 
friend, whose grave he wished to have near his own, 

175 



176 niARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

was the Rev. Daniel Sharp, D.D., minister of the 
Charles-street Baptist Churcli, in Boston. Tliere were 
few in Boston who were not familiar with the appear- 
ance of this venerable clergyman, as he daily appeared 
in the streets ; and fewer still who had not learned to 
appreciate the truly catholic and Christian spirit which 
animated him in his intercoui'se with men of all sects 
and parties. Mr. LaAvrence had early entertained a 
great esteem for his character ; and this esteem had 
become mutual, and had ripened into the closest inti- 
macy and friendship. On receiving a deed of a lot at 
Mount Auburn, Dr. Sharp writes as follows : 

" Boston, August 23, 1843. 
" My dear Sir : I cannot find words with which to express 
my sense of your unexpected and considerate kindness, in pro- 
viding so beautiful a resting-place in Mount Auburn for me and 
my loved ones. It is soothing to nie to anticipate that my grave 
will be so near your own. May the Almighty, in his infinite 
mercy, grant, that, when the trumpet shall souud, and the dead 
shall awake, we may both rise together, to be forever with the 
Lord ! If the proximity of my last place of repose to ministers 
of another denomination shall teach candor, charity, and peace, I 
enjoy the sweet consciousness that this will be in harmony with 
the object of my life. Yours, gi'atefully, 

'• Daniel Suarp. 

" Amos Lawrence, Esq." 

The enlai'ged Christian spirit which formed so prom- 
inent a trait in Mr. Lawrence's character, and which 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 177 

enabled him to appreciate goodness wherever it could 
be found, without reference to nation, sect, or color, 
may be further illustrated by the following note of 
acknowledgment, received about the same time with 
the preceding, from Bishop Mcllvaine, of the Protest- 
ant Episcopal Church in Ohio, who was then on a visit 
to Boston to procure funds in aid of Kenyou College : 

" Wednesday evening. 
"My dear Sir: I have just received your very kind and 
grateful letter, ■with its cheering enclosure of a hundred dollars 
towards an object which engrosses me much just now. Thank 
you, dear sir, most truly, for your kindness, and the Jirst fruits 
of Boston, for I came only to-day. I trust the ingathering will 
not dispossess the first ripe sheaf Coming from one not of my 
own church, it is the more kind and grateful. 0, sir ! if God 
shall so bless my present effort as to send me home with the sum 
I seek, I shall know a freedom of mind from care and anxiety 
such as I have not experienced for many years, during which our 
present crisis has been anticipated. I shall have great pleasure 
in riding with you, according to your note to j\Ir. R. To-morrow 
will probably be a day of more leisure to me than any other 
while I shall be in Boston. 

" Yours, very truly and respectfully, 

" Charles P. McIlvaixe." 

(to one of his P.iRTXERS.) 

" December IS, 1843. 

" Dear Mk. Parker: I am j)tiffed vp (with ague), but not 

in a manner to gratify my pride, as I am housed, and denied the 

sight of most of those who call, Ijut not the privilege of reading 
23 



178 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

their papers, and spending money. In short, I have more use for 
money when in the house than when able to be abroad. If you 
■will tell Brother Sharp * his beautiful bills find an exceedingly 
ready use, I shall be glad of one hundred in ones and twos, two 
hundred in fives, and three hundred in tens and twenties ; say six 
hundred dollars, just to keep me along till the end of the month. 
The calls are frequent and striking. ' Do with thy might what 
thy hand findeth to do ; for the night cometh, when no man can 
work.' God grant me the blessing of being ready to answer the 
call, whether it be at noon or at midnight ! "' 

Twelve days after, he writes to the same gentleman 
for another supply ; the sum already received not 
having been sufficient apparently to carry him through 
the year : 

" December 30, 184.3. 

" ' The good there is in riches lieth altogether in their use, like 
the woman's box of ointment ; if it be not broken and the con- 
tents poured out for the refreshment of Jesus Christ, in his dis- 
tressed members, they lose their worth ; the covetous man may 
therefore truly write upon his rusting heaps, " These are good 
for nothing." He is not rich who lays up much, but he who lays 
out much ; for it is all one not to have, as not to use. I will 
therefore be the richer by charitable laying out, while the 
worldling will be poorer by his covetous hoarding up.' 

" Here is the embodiment of a volume, and whoever wrote it 
deserves the thanks of good men. I would fain be rich, accord- 
ing as he defines riches ; but possession, possession, is the devil, 
as the old Frenchman at said to George Cabot. This devil 

* Fur more than forty years Teller in Massachusetts Bank. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE, 179 

I would try to cast out ; you will therefore please send me twelve 
humli-ed dollars, which may do something for the comfort of those 
who have seen better days. Your friend, A. L. 

" To C. 11. Parker, Esq." 

The following letter from Judge Story was received 
at about the time the preceding letter was written ; 
but no memorandum is found by which to ascertain the 
occasion which called it forth. It may be that he had 
been made the channel, as was the case a few months 
before, of some donation to a third person ; a mode 
which Mr. Lawrence often adopted when he felt a 
delicacy in proffering direct aid to some one whose 
sensitiveness might be wounded in receiving assistance 
from a comparative stranger : 

" Cambridge, Saturday noon. 
" My DEAR Sir: I have this moment finished reading your 
letter and its enclosures, which did not reach me until this noon, 
and I can scarcely describe to you how deeply I have beea 
affected by them. I almost feel that you are too much oppressed 
by the constant calls for charitable purposes, and that your liberal 
and conscientious spirit is tasked to its utmost extent. ' The poor 
have ye always with you ' is a Christian truth ; and I know not, 
in the whole circle of my friends, any one who realizes it so fully, 
and acts upon it so nobly, as yourself God, my dear sir, will 
reward you for all your goodness ; man never can. And yet the 
gratitude of the many whom you relieve, their prayers for your 
happiness, their consciousness of your expanded benevolence, is 
of itself a treasure of inestimalile value. It is a soui'ce of con- 
solation, which you would not exchange for any earthly boon of 



180 DIARY AND CORRESPONDEXCE. 

equal value. AVealtli is to you an eulightened trust, for the 

benefit of your race. You administer it so gracefully, as Tvell as 

so justly, that I can only regret that your means are not ten 

times as great. Gracious Heavens ! What a contrast is your 

life to that of some wealthy men, who have lived many yeai's, and 

have yet to learn how to give, or, as you beautifully expressed it 

the other day, who have yet to learn to be their own executors ! 

jMy heart is so full of you, and of tlio whole matter, that I would 

fain pour out my thoughts at large to you ; for you understand 

me, and I can sympathize with you. But just now I am full of 

all sorts of business, and without a moment to spare, having 

many judicial opinions to prepare in the few remaining days 

before I go to Washington ; and, witlial, having Mrs. S. very ill, 

in I'espect to whom I feel a deep anxiety. But, wherever I am, I 

pray you to believe that you are always in my thoughts, with the 

warmest affection and dearest remembrance. And, if this hasty 

scrawl is not too slight for such a matter, pray preserve it among 

your papers, that your children may know what I thought of 

their father, when you and I shall be both in our graves. 

"I am most truly and faithfully your oliliged friend, 

'■Joseph Story. 
" Amos Lawrenxe, Esq. 

" P. S. — I have sent the letter and its accompaniments to Jlr. 

— ■ — . Think of . Tliiuk of those rich men in , who 

have never dreamed of the duties of charity. Cast a view to 
their own posterity. How striking a memento is the very case of 

, presented in his own letters, of the instability of human 

fortune!" 

Mr. Lawrence clo.ses the year 1843 by a review of 
his temporal affair.s, and by fresh resohitions of fidelity 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 181 

to his trusts. He then gives an estimate of his income 
and expenditures, showing a somewhat large excess of 
the hitter, though, as he says, from the state of the 
times, not to the detriment of his property. 

(to the mechanic apprentices' librart association.) 

" My young Friexds : It cheers and comforts me to learn of 
your well-doing, and encourages me to offer a word of counsel, as 
prosperity is often more dangerous in its time than adversity. 
Now is your seed-time. See to it that it is good ; for ' what- 
soever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.' The integi'ity, 
intelligence, and elevated bearing, of the Boston mechanics, have 
Ijeen and are a property for each citizen of great value ; inasmuch 
as the gi:)od name of our beloved city is a common property, that 
every citizen has an interest in, and should help to preserve. At 
your time of life, habits are formed that grow with your years. 
Avoid rum and tobacco, in all forms, unless prescribed as a med- 
icine ; and I will promise you better contracts, heavier purses, 
happier families, and a more youthful and vigorous old age, by 
thus avoiding the beginning of evil. God speed you. my young 
friends, in all your good works ! With the enclosed, I pray you 
to accept the felicitations of the season. 

" Amos Lawrence." 



CIIAPTEE XXI. 

ACQUAINTAXCE WITH PRESIDENT HOPKINS. —LETTERS. — AFFEC- 
TION FOR BR.VTTLE-STREET CHURCH. — DEATH OF MRS. APPLETON. 
— LETTERS. — AMESBURY CO. 

At the commencement of the year 1844, President 
Hopkins, of Williams College, delivered a course of 
lectures on the "Evidences of Christianity," before the 
Lowell Institute, in Boston. Mr. Lawrence had pre- 
viously seen him, and had thought that he detected, in 
some features of his foce, a resemblance to the family 
of his first wife. In allusion to this acquaintance, he 
writes to his son about this period : 

" President II. has the flimily look of your mother enough 
to belong to them ; and it ■was in consequence of that resem- 
blance, when I was first introduced to him many years ago, that I 
inquired his origin, and found him to be of the same stock." 

The acquaintance was renewed, and an intimacy 
ensued, which was not only the cause of much happi- 
ness to Mr. Lawrence through the remainder of his life, 
but was also the means of directing his attention to the 
wants of Williams College, of which he eventually be- 
came the greatest benefactor. An active and constant 

182 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 183 

correspoiiclence followed this acquaintance, and was so 
much prized hy Mr. Lawrence that he had most of the 
letters copied, thereby filling several volumes, from 
Avhich extracts will from time to time he made. In 
one of his first letters to that gentleman, dated May 11, 
he says : 

"If, by the consecration of my earthly possessions to some 
extent, I can make the Christian character practically more 
lovely, and illustrate, in my own case, that the higher enjoyments 
here ai-e promoted by the free use of the good things intrusted to 
me, what so good use can I make of them ? I feel that my stew- 
ardship is a very imperfect one, and that the use of these good 
things might be extended profitably to myself; and, since I have 
known how much good the little donation did your college, I feel 
ashamed of myself it had not been larger, — at any rate, sufficient 
to have cleared the debt." 

To the same gentleman, who had informed Mr. Law- 
rence that an accident had befallen a plaster bust of 
liimself, he writes, under date of May 16 : 

" Dear President : You know the phrase ' Such a man's 
head is full of notions ' has a meaning that we all understand to 
be not to his credit for discretion, whatever else may be said of 
him. As I propose throwing in a caveat against this general 
meaning, I proceed to state my case. And, firstly. President H. 
is made debtor to the Western Railroad Corporation for the trans- 
portation of a barrel to Pittsficld. The bill is receipted, so that 
you can have the barrel to-morrow by sending for it ; which bar- 
rel contains neither biscuit nor flour, but the clay image of your 



184 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

friend. In the head are divers notions that my hand fell upon as 
I was preparing it for the jaunt ; and, when the head was iilled 
with tilings new and old, I was careful to secure the region under 
the shoulders, especiallj on the left side, and near the heart, by 
placing there that part of a lady's dress which designates a gov- 
ernment that we men are unwilling openly to acknowledge, but 
is, withal, very conservative. Within its folds I wrapped up 
very securely ' Pilgrim's Progress,' and stuffed the empty space 
between my shoulders, and near my heart, brim full. I hope 
my young friend will find a motive and a moral in the image and 
in the book, to cheer him on in his pilgrimage of life." 



"July 22, 1844. — Sixty-seven years ago this day, my mother, 
now living, was married ; and, while standing up for the cere- 
mony, the alarm-Ix'Il rang, calling all soldiers to their posts. My 
father left her within the hour, and repaired to Cambridge ; liut 
the colonel, in consideration of the circumstances, allowed him to 
return to Groton to his wife, and to join his regiment within three 
days at Rhode Island. This he did, spending but a few hours 
with his wife ; and she saw nothing more of him until the last day 
of the year, when he made her a visit. I have ordered a thousand 
dollars paid to the Massachusetts General Hospital, to aid in 
enlarging its wings, and to commemorate this event. The girls 
of this day know nothing of the privations and trials of their 
grandmothers." 

On the same day with the above entry in his diary 
occurs another, in ■\vhicli he alludes to assistance 
afTorded to some young persons in Brattle-street 
Church, — "sons of Brattle-street, and, as such, as- 
sisted by me." ]\Ir. Lawrence's early religious asso- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 185 

ciations were connected with this church, where, it is 
believed, he attended from the first Sunday after his 
coming to Boston. With such associations, and con- 
nected as they were with the most endeared recollec- 
tions of those who had worshipped there with him in 
early days, all that pertained to this venerable church 
possessed a strong and abiding interest. In this con- 
nection is quoted the beautiful testimony of his pastor, 
the Rev. Dr. Lothrop, furnished in the funeral sermon 
delivered l)y him, where he speaks of Mr. Lawrence's 
love for the church, as weU as of his religious char- 
acter : 

" The jjrominent feature in ]\Ir. Lawrence's life and character, 
its inspiration and its guide, was religion, — religious faith, affec- 
tion, and hope. He loved God, and therefore he loved all God's 
creatures. He believed in Christ as the Messiah and Saviour of 
the world, and therefore found peace and strength in his soul, 
amid all the perils, duties, and sorrows of life. His religious 
opinions lay distinct and clear in his own mind. They were 
the result of careful reading and of serious reflection, and were 
marked by a profound reverence for the Sacred Scriptures, and 
the divine authority of Jesus Christ. A constant worshipper 
here during the forty-six years of his residence in this city, for 
more than forty years of this period a communicant, and for more 
than ten a deacon of this church, — resigning the ofBce, at length, 
because of his invalid state of health, — he had strong attach- 
ments to this house of God. ' Our venerable church,' he says in 
one of his notes to me, ' has in it deeply impressive, improving, 
instructive, and interesting associations, going back to the eaxly 
24 



186 DIARY AND COREESPONUENCE. 

days of my worshipping there ; and the prayers of my friends 
and fellow-worshippers of three generations, in part now belonging 
there, come in aid of my weakness in time of need ; and no other 
spot, but that home where I was first taught my prayers, and this 
my domestic fireside, where my cliildren have been taught theirs, 
has the same interest as our own old Brattle-S(.|uare Cluiruh.' " 

To an old business friend and acquaintance, Joshua 
Aubin, Esq., the agent of the Amesbury Company, who 
had from the beginning been associated with him in this 
first and favorite manufacturing enterprise in wliich he 
had engaged, he writes on September 18, after receiv- 
ing a quantity of manufactured articles for distribution 
among the poor : 

"You are brought very near to me on such a day as this 
(when I am shut up in tlie house), by your work as well as by 
your words. 

" Now, as to your last consignment, I have derived, and e.xpect 
to derive, as much comfort and enjoyment from it as I ordinarily 
should from a cash dividend on my shares. In truth, I am able 
to employ these odds mid ends to such uses and for such persons 
as will make me feel as though I were spared here for some use. 

" For instance, I had a call from a most respectalde friend 
(president of one of the best colleges in the West) last week, 
who agreed to come again this week to do some shopping as soon 
as he got some money for preaching on Sunday, and look over 
my stock of goods. 

" I intend making him up a good parcel of your work, and, 
depend on it, it is good seed, and will take root at the West. He 
says that they have no money, but plenty of corn, and l)ecf, and 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 187 

pork. Corn pays for growing at ten cents a bushel, and will not 
bring that in cash ; and ten bushels will not pay for a calico gown, 
or a flannel petticoat. 

"With his large family of cliildren, don't you think these 
odds and ends will come as a blessing ? Besides, he is an old- 
fashioned Massachusetts Whig ; loves the old Bay State as well 
as ever the Jews loved their State, and is, through his college, 

exercising an influence in that no body of men in that State 

can do ; and will, in the end, bring them into regular line, as to 
education and elevation of character. Send me some of your 

flannels to give to Madam for her family of one or two 

hundred children in the Children's Friend Society. 

" will give them over to these poor little destitute, unclad 

creatures. They are taken and saved by this interesting society. 

" A rainy day like this is the very time for me to work among 
my household goods. Many a poor minister and his family, and 
many a needy student at school or college, fare the better for 
your spinning and weaving. 

"I am living in my chamber, and on very close allowance. 
Every day to me is a day of glorious anticipations, if I am free 
from bodily suSbring, and if my mind is free." 

On another occasion he writes to the same gen- 
tleman : 

"I have your letter and package; the cold of this morn- 
ing will make the articles doubly acceptable to the shivering and 
sick poor among us. J. C.'s case is one for sympathy and relief. 
Engage to supply him a hundred dollars, which I will hand to 
you when you visit me ; and tell the poor fellow to keep in good 
heart, for our merciful Father afilicts in love, and thus I trust 
that this will prove a stepping-stone to the mansions of bliss. I 



188 DIAET A5D C0RBESP0ST)E5CE. 

shall never cease to remember with interest the reterans of the 
A. F. Co. How are my friends B. and others of early days ? 
Also, how is old Either F. ? Does he need my warm outside 
coat, when I get supplied with a better ? 

" After your call upon me a few weeks since, I went back in 
memory to scenes of olden times, which had an interest that you 
can sympathize in, and which I intended to express to you before 
thi-^ : but I have had one of those admonitory iU turns since, that 
kept me under the eye of the doctor for a number of days. 

" In reviewing my beginnings in manuSicturing, under your 
recommendation and care, almost a quarter of a century ago, I 
can see the men, the machines, the wheel-pit, and the speed- 
gauge, and especially I can see our old friend W. lying on the 
bottom of the pit. lamp in hand, with his best coat on, eying the 
wheels and cogs as an astronomer makes observations in an 
observatory. AH these scenes are as fresh in my memory as 
though seen but yesterday. 

"Do you remember C. B., the brother of J. and G. B. ? AU 
three of whom were business men here at the time you were, and 

all were unfortunate. C. tried his hand in , and did not 

succeed there ; returned to this country, and settled on a tract of 

land in , where he has been hard at work for ten years, and 

has maintained his family. His wife died a few months since. 
One after another of his family sickened, and he became some- 
what straitened, and knew not what to do. He wrote to an old 
business friend, who was his debtor, and who had faUed. had paid 
a part only, and was discharged thirty years ago, and who has 
since been prosperous. He stated his case, and asked me to say 
a good word for him. That person sent one half, and I sent the 
other half, the day before Thanksgiving. It will reach him on 
Monday next, and will make his eyes glisten with joy. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 189 

" Remember mc to Capt. and J. C, and B., and any 

other of the veterans." 

Sept. 23, Mr. Lawrence receives from an old debtor, 
once a clerk in his establislnnent, a check for five 
hundred dollars, which a sense of justice had induced 
him to send, though the debt of some thousands had 
been long since legally discharged. On receiving it, 
he writes, in a memorandum at the bottom of the letter 
received, to his brother and partner : 

" Dear Abbott : I have the money. J. D. was ahvays a 
person of truth. I take the statement as true ; but I had no 
recollection of the thing till recalled by his statement. What 
say you to putting this money into the life office, in trust for his 
sister? Your affectionate brother, Amos." 

" Mejioraxduji. November 23. — Done, and policy sent to 
the sister." 

There are but few men, distinguished in public or 
private life, who are burdened with an undue amount 
of praise from their contemporaries ; and yet this was 
the case with Mr. Lawrence, wlio was often chagrined, 
after some deed of charity, or some written expression 
of sympathy, to see it emblazoned, with superadded 
colors, in the public prints. Some one had enclosed to 
him a newspaper from another city, which contained a 
most labored and flattering notice of the kind referred 
to, to which he writes the following reply : 



190 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" September, 1844. 

" Dear : I received the paper last evening, and have 

read and re-read it mt\i deep interest and attention. However 
true it may be, it is not calculated to promote the ultimate good 
of any of us ; for v^e are all inclined to think full well enough 
of ourselves ; and such puffs should be left for our obituaries. 
Truth is not always to be pushed forward ; and its advocates may 
sometimes retard it by injudicious urging. Such is the danger 
in the present case. The writer appears to be a young man 
who has received favors, and is laboring to repay them or secure 
more. He has told the truth ; but, as I before said, neither you 
nor I, nor any one of our families, are improved or benefited in 
any degree by it. God grant us to be humble, diligent, and 
faithful to the end of our journey, that we may then receive his 
approval, and be placed among the good of all nations and 
times ! " 

On the 29th of October, Mrs. Appleton, his sister- 
in-law, and widow of the Rev. Jesse Appleton, D.D., 
formerly President of Bowdoin College, died at his 
house, after a lingering illness. In a letter to his son, 
after describing her character and peaceful death, he 
says : 

"With such a life and such hopes, who can view the change 
as any other than putting away the fugitive and restless pleasures 
of an hour for the quiet and fixed enjoyments of eternity ? Let 
us, then, my dear children, not look upon the separation of a few 
short years as a calamity to be dreaded, should we not meet here 
again in any other way than as we now meet. While I am here, 
every joy and enjoyment you experience, and give us an account 



DIARY AND COKRESPONDENCE. 191 

of, is not less so to us than if we were with you to partake, as 
we have done of all such heretofore ; and, in this source of 
enjoyment, few pcojjlc have such ample stores. Three families 
of children and grandchildren within my daily walk, — is not this 
enough for any man ? And here I would impress upon my 
grandsons the importance of looking carefully to their steps. 
The difference between going just right and a little wrong in the 
commencement of the journey of life, is the difference between 
their finding a happy home or a miserable slough at the end of 
the journey. Teach them to avoid tobacco and intoxicating 
drink, and all temptations that can lead them into evil, as it is 
easier to prevent than to remedy a fault. ' An ounce of preven- 
tion is worth a pound of cure.' I was going on to say that, 
according to my estimate of men and things, I would not change 
conditions with Louis Philippe if I could by a wish, rich as he is 
in the matter of good children. I have a great liking for him, 
and a sincere respect for his family, as they are reported to me ; 
but I trust that mine will not be tried by the temptations of great 
worldly grandeur, but that they will be found foithful stewards 
of the talents intrusted to them. Brmg up your boys to do 
their work first, and enjoy their play afterwards. Begin early 
to teach them habits of order, a proper economy, and exact 
accountaliility in tlicir affliirs. This simple rule of making a 
child, after he is twelve years old, keep an exact account of all 
that he wears, uses, or expends, in any and every way, would 
save more suffering to families than can fairly be estimated by 
those who have not observed its operation. 

"And now, to change the subject," he writes Nov. 15, "we 
have got through the elections, and are humbled as Americans. 
The questions affecting our local labor, produce, and pecuniary 
interests, are of small moment, compared with that of annexing 



192 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

Texas to this Union. I wrote a brief note yesterday to our 

friend Chapman, late Mayor of the city, and a member of the 

Whig Committee, -yvhich speaks the language of my heai-t. It 
was as follows : 

" ' My dear Sir : The result of the election in Massachusetts 
is matter of devout and grateful feelings to every good citizen, 
and, so far as pride is allowable, is a subject of pride to every 
citizen, whatever his politics ; for, wherever he goes, and carries 
the evidence of belonging to the old Eay State, he may be sure 
of the respect of all parties. This glorious result has not been 
wrought "without works;" and for it we, the people, are greatly 
indebted to your committee. So far as may be neetled, I trust 
you will find no backwardness on our part in putting matters 
right. I bless God for sparing my life to this time ; and I hum- 
bly beseech him to crown your labors with success in future. If 
Texas can be kept off, there will be hope for oui' government. 
All other questions are insignificant in comparison with this. 
The damning sin of adding it to this nation to extend slavery will 
be as certain to destroy us as death is to overtake us. The false 
step, once taken, cannot be retraced, and will be to the people 
who occupy what rum is to the toper. It eats up and uproots the 
very foundation on which Christian nations are based, and will 
make us the scorn of all Christendom. Let us work, then, in a 
Christian spirit, as we would for our individual salvation, to 
prevent this sad calamity befalling us.' " 



CHAPTER XXII. 

DEATH OF ms DAUGHTER. — LETTERS — BOxVATIOX TO WILLIAMS 
COLLEGE. — BENEFICENCE. _ LETTERS. 

On the 2nth of November, INIr. Lawrence addressed 
to his sou a most joyous letter, anuouueing the birth of 
twin-grand daughters, and tlie comfortable health of his 
daughter, the wife of the Rev. Charles Mason, Rector of 
St. Peter's Church, at Salem, Massachusetts. The letter 
is filled with the most devout expressions of gratitude at 
the event, and cheering anticipations for the future, 
and yet with some feelings of uneasiness lest the 
strength of his daughter should not be sufficient to 
sustain her in these trying circumstances. He adds : 

" Wliy, then, slioulil I worry myself about what I cannot help, 
and practically distrust that goodness that sustains and cheers and 

cnbvens my days ? " 

The fears expressed were too soon and sadly real- 
ized ; the powers of her constitution had been too 
severely taxed, nature gave Avay, and, four days after- 
wards, she ceased to live. Mr. Lawrence announced 
the death of this cherished and only daughter in the 
following letter : 

25 193 



194 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" Boston, December 14, 1844. 
"My dear Son : The joyous event I mentioned of S.'s twins 
has in it sad memorials of the uiiccrtainty of all joys, excepting 
those arising from the happiness of friends whose journey is 
ended, and whose joys are commencmg. Long life does not con- 
sist in many years, but in the use of the years allowed us ; so 
that many a man who has seen his four-score has, for all the pur- 
poses of life, not lived at all. And, again, others, who have 
impressed distinct marks, and have been called away before 
twenty-eight years have passed over them, may have lived long 
lives, and Itave been objects of grateful interest to multitudes who 
hardly spoke to them while living. Such has been the case with 
our hearts' love and desire, Susan Mason. The giving birth to 
those two babes, either of whom would have been her pride and 
delight, was more than she could recruit from. The exhaustion 
and faintness at the time were great, but not alarming ; and the 
joy of our hearts for a season seemed unmixed. After three 
days, the alarm for her safety had taken stronger hold of her 
other friends than of myself; and, at the time I wrote you last, 
I felt strong confidence in her recovery. On Sunday evening, at 
seven o'clock, a great change came over her, that precluded all 
hope, and she was told by C. how it was. She seemed prepared 
for it, was clear in her mind, and, with what little strength she 
had, sent messages of love. ' Give love to my father, and tell 
him I hope we shall meet in heaven,' was her graphic and char- 
acteristic message ; and then she desired C. to lead and guide her 
thoughts in prayer, which he continued to do for as many as si.x 
times, until within the last half-hour of her life. At three 
o'clock on Monday morning, the 2d instant, her pure spirit passed 
out of its earthly tenement to its heavenly home, where our 
Father has called her to be secured from the trials and pains and 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 195 

exposures to which she was here liable. It is a merciful Father, 
who knows better than we do what is for our good. What is now 
mysterious will be made plain at the right time, for ' He doeth all 
things well.' Shall we, then, my dear cliildren, doubt him in 
this? Surely not. S. was ripe for heaven, and, as a good 
scholar, has passed on in advance of her beloved ones ; but beck- 
ons us on, to be reunited, and become joint heirs with her of 
those treasures provided for those who are found worthy. We 
are now to think of her as on the other side of Jordan, before the 
same altar that wo worship at, without any of the alloy that 
mixes in ours ; she praising, and we praying, and all hoping an 
interest in the Beloved that shall make all things seem less than 
nothing in comparison with this. We have had the sympathy of 
friends ; and the circumstances have brought to light new friends, 
that make us feel our work here is not done. I feel called two 
ways at once : S. beckoning me to come up ; the little ones 
appealing to the inmost recesses of my heart to stay, and lead 
them, with an old grandfather's fondest, strongest, tenderest 
emotions, as the embodiment of my child. Her remains are 
placed at the head of her mother's ; and those two young 
mothers, thus placed, will speak to their kindred with an elo- 
quence that words cannot. I try to say, in these renewed tokens 
of a Father's di.scipline, 'Thy will be done,' and to look more 
carefully after my tendency to have some idol growing upon me 
that is inconsistent with that first place he requires ; and I fur- 
ther try to keep in mind, that, if I loved S. much, he loved her 
more, and has provided against the changes she was exposed to 
under the best care I could render. Let us praise God for her 
long life in a few years, and profit by the example she has left. 
The people of her own church are deeply afflicted, and not until 
her death were any of us aware of the strong hold she ha<l upon 



196 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

them. Some touching incidents have occurred, ■wliich are a 
better monument to her memory than any mai-ljle that can be 
reared. * * * * 

" This morning opens most splendidly, and beautifully illus- 
trates, in the appearance of the sky, that glorious eternity so 
much cherished in the mind of the believer. 

"With sincerest affection, your father, A. L." 

" TiiEMONT-STKEET, Tuesday morning. 
" Dear Partners : Tlie weather is such as to keep me 
housed to-day, and it is important to me to have something to 
think of beside myself. The sense of loss will press upon me 
more than I desire it, without the other side of the account. All 
is ordered in wisdom and in mercy ; and we pay a poor tribute to 
our Father and best Friend in distrusting him. I do most sin- 
cerely hope that I may say, from the heart, ' Thy will be done.' 
Please send me a thousand dollars by G., in small bills, thus 
enabling me to fill up the time to some practical purpose. It is a 
painful thought to me that I shall see my beloved daughter no 
more on earth ; but it is a happy one to think of joining her in 
heaven. Yours, ever, A. L. 

" A. & A. LAWRE^•CE & Co." 

On the last day of 1844, a date now to be remem- 
bered by liis friends as that on which his own departure 
took phxce, eight years hiter, he writes to his children 
in France : 

" This last day of the year seems to have in it such tokens and 
emblems as are calculated to comfort and encourage the youthful 
pilgrim, just in his vigor, not less than the old one, near the end 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 197 

of his journey : for the sun in the heavens, the hills in the west. 
and the ocean on the east, all speak, in tones not to be mistaken, 
' Be of good courage,' ' Work ivhile it is day,' and receive, without 
murmuring, the discipline a Father applies ; for lie knows what is 
best for his childi'en. Whether he plants thorns in the path, or 
afflicts them in any way, he does all for their good. Thus, my 
dear children, are we to view the removal of our beloved S. This 
year had been one of unusual prosperity and enjoyment, from the 
first day to the present month ; and all seemed so lovely here 
that there was danger of our feeling too much reliance on these 
temporals. The gem in the centi'e has been removed, to show us 
the tenure l:>y which we held the others." 

At the opening of the year 1845, Mr. Lawrence, 
after noting in his property-book the usual annual 
details, makes the following reflections : 

"The business of the past year has been eminently successful, 
and the increased value of many of the investments large. In 
view of these trusts, how shall we appear when the Master calls ? 
I would earnestly strive to keep constantly in mind the fact that 
he %vill call, and that speedily, upon each and all of us ; and that, 
when he calls, the question will be, IIow have you used these ? 
not IIow much have you hoarded ? " 

With the new year, he set himself at work with 
renewed zeal to carry into effect his good resolutions. 
One of the first results was a donation of ten thousand 
dollars to Williams College, which he enters upon his 
hook with the following memorandum : 

'• I am so well satisfied with the appropriations heretofore made 



198 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

for the advancement and improvement of Williams College tli;it I 
desire to make further investment in the same, to the amount of 
ten thousand dollars. In case any new professorship is estab- 
lished in the college, I should be gratified to have it called the 
Hopkins Professorship, entertaining, as I do, the most entii'e 
confidence and respect for its distinguished President." 

Nearly every day, at this period, bears some record 
of his charities ; and among others was a considerable 
donation to a Baptist college, in another State, enclosed 
to a Baptist clergyman in Boston, with a check of fifty 
dollars for himself, to enable him to take a journey for 
recruiting his health and strength, of which he was 
much in need. Soon after Mr. Lawrence's death, an 
article appeared in an influential religious publication 
giving an estimate of the amount of his charities, and 
also stating that his pocket-book had written upon it a 
text of Scripture, calculated to remind him of his duties 
in the distribution of his wealth. The text was said to 
be, " What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole 
world, and lose his own soul ? " 

After making diligent search, the editor of this vol- 
ume, rather to correct the statement in regard to the 
amount of his charities than for any other object, con- 
tradicted the assertion, and also expressed the opinion 
that Mr. Lawrence needed no such memorial as this to 
remind him of his duties ; for the law of charity was 
too deeply graven on his heart to require the insertion 
of the text in the manner described. Some time after- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 199 

ward, an old pocket-book was found, wliicli bad not 
probably been in use for many years, but wbich con- 
tained the text alluded to, inscribed in ink, though 
faded from the lapse of time and constant use. It 
may have been useful to him in early years, before he 
engaged systematically in the work of charity ; but, 
during the latter years of his life, if we can judge 
from his writings, as well as from his daily actions, his 
sense of accountability was extreme, if there can be an 
extreme in the zealous performance of one's duty in 
this respect. 

If the class of politicians alluded to in the following 
extract could have foreseen the course of events with 
the same sagacity, it might have saved them from much 
uncertainty, and have been of service in their career : 

" We are in a poor way, jjolitically, in this country. This 
practice of taking up demagogues for high office is no way to 
perpetuate liberty. The new party of Native Amei-icans is likely 
to go forward, and will break up the Whig party, and where it 
will stop is to be learned." 

'■'■March 1. — Spring opens upon us this morning with a 
frowning face : the whole heaven is veiled, and the horizon dark 
and lowering."' 

"May 7. — My venerated mother finished her earthly course 
last Friday, with the setting sun, which was emblematic of her 
end. She was such a woman as I am thankful to have descended 
from. Many interesting circumstances connected with her life, 



200 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

before and aftei- her marriage (in July, 1777), are worth record- 
ing. She was in her ninetieth year." 

(to nis SON.) 

" April 30. 

" I began a record yesterday morning, referring to my position 

and duties thirty-eight years ago, when I left my father's house 

(one week after I was free), with less than twenty dollars in my 

possession. I came an unknown and unfriended young man, but 

feeling; richer the mornino; after I came than I have ever felt 

since ; so that I gave the man who came with me, in my father's 

chaise, a couple of dollars to save him from any expense, and 

insure him against loss, by his spending two days on the journey, 

for which he was glad of an excuse. Had he been as industrious 

and temperate and frugal, he would have left his wife and children 

independent, instead of leaving them poor and dependent. These 

contrasts, and the duties they impose, have pressed heavily upon 

my strength for a few days past ; and, in endeavoring to place in 

a clear view my hopes and wishes, I became pressed down, and, 

since yesterday, have been upon my abstinence remedy. My wish 

has been to do a good work for our Athcnreum and our Institution 

for Savings, by making it the interest of the Savings Institution 

to sell their building to the Athenaeum, so that a handsome and 

convenient building may be erected while we are about it. To 

this end, I have offered to supply the beautiful temple built for 

the Washington Bank, rent free, for one year, or a longer period 

to the end of time, while used as a Savings Bank ; intending, by 

this, to express to those who deposit their money there that I feel 

deeply interested in their welfore, and would earnestly impress 

upon them the importance of saving, and, when they become rich, 

of spending for the good of their fellow-mortals the surplus which 

a bountiful Father in heaven allows them to acquire. This sur- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 201 

plus with me, at the present time, will be sufBcient to allow me 
to speak with earnestness, sincerity, and power, to the tens of 
thousands of industrious Thomases and Marthas * as well as to 
the young mechanics, or the youngsters who have had little sums 
deposited for their education. All these characters appreciate a 
kind act as fully as those who move in a different sphere in the 
world. 

"7 P. M. — I have just learned that there is some difficulty 
not easily overcome in this removal of the Bank ; and, after all, 
nothing may come out of my offer. If not, I shall have more 
spare means for something else." 

The value of the building thus offered was about 
twenty thousand dollars. Owing to the difficulties 
alluded to in the preceding letter, the offer was 
declined, though the motive for the act was fully- 
appreciated. 

(to a friend.) 
" My dear Friend : I have this moment learned the death 
of your dear boy J. L., and am with you in spirit in this trying 
scene. Our Father adapts his discipline to our needs ; and in 
this (although to our weak perception it may seem harsh disci- 
pline) he has a Father's love and care of and for you ; and the 
time will come when all will be made clear to you. In this trust 
and confidence, I hope both your dear wife and self will be able 
to say from the heart, ' Thy will be done.' Our business in this 
world is to prepare for another ; and, if we act wisely, we shall 
view aright the calls upon us to make this world our great object, 
by attaining its honors, its houses, its lands, its praises for gener- 
osity, disinterestedness, and divers other things that pass well 

* Names of two faithful domestics. 
26 



202 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

among men. Where Ave hope to be welcomed, temptations arc not 
needed. Wc pray, therefore, to be accepted, through the Beloved, 
and so make all things ivoi'lc together to liclp us safely through 
our course. Yours ever, A. L." 

To tlic agent of a manufactoiy in wliicli he was 
largely interested he writes : 

" We must make a good thiiin- out of this establishment, unless 
you ruin us by working on Sundays. Nothing but works of 
necessity should be done in holy time ; and I am a firm believer 
in the doctrine that a blessing will more surely follow those exer- 
tions which are made with reference to our religious obligations, 
than upon those made without such reference. The more you can 
impress your people with a sense of religious obligation, the better 
they will serve you." 



CIIArTER XXIII. 

LETTER FROM DR. SHiUlP. — ILLNESS AND DEATH OF SON. — 
LETTERS. — AFFLICTIONS. 

The Rev. Dr. Sharp, of the Baptist denomination, 
who has been previously alluded to as a valued friend 
of Mr. Lawrence, had made a visit to England, the 
land of his birth, after an absence of forty years, and 
thus addresses him from Leeds, July 1 : 

" I esteem it one of the happy events of my life that I have 
been made personally acqnainted with you. Not certainly 
because of your kind benefactions to me and mine, but because 
I have enjoyed your conversation, and have been delighted with 
those manifestations of principle and conduct, which, let them 
grow under what Christian culture they may, I know how to 
honor, to acknowledge, and to love." 

The same gentleman writes, shortly afterwards : 

" I thank you for the kind manner in which you express your- 
self in regard to my occasional sermons. I never had any taste 
for controversy, nor for theological speculation ; although, as a 
Christian watchman, I have kept myself informed of the religious 
opinions that have been, and that are. I thank you, as does my 
dear wife, for your thoughtful concern of the sacred spot so dear 

203 



204 DIARY A>"D COBKESPO>"I>ESCK. 

both to mj recollectioBS and hopes. There, when life's joumej 
is ended. I hope to rest bv the side of those -whose companj and 
unfailing a&ction have gladdened so manj of nij years ; and it 
has given me a subdued pleasure, iirhen I have thought that mj 
own. bed of death would be so near that of the kind and gentle- 
hearted friend who provided me with nune. Maj all who ^all 
repose near that interesting spot be imbued with a pure and 
loving Christian spirit, that, when the trumpet shall sound, and 
the dead shall arise, we mav all rise together in glorious forms, 
to be forever with the Lord ! "' 



(to OXE of his F^iSIXEBS.) 

" Tremont-street, September SO, 1845. 
" Dear !Mr. Pakkeb : I am buoyant and afloat again, and 
able to enjoy the good things you are so liberal in providing. 
The widow's box of ointment was broken before its value was 
learned. The sermon is significant and practical. I would be 
thankful to improve under its teaching. WUl you send me two 
thousand dollars this morning in ilr. Sharp's clean money ? thus 
allowing me the opportunity of expressing my gratitude to a 
merciful Father above, that he stiU permits me to administer the 
goods things he has intrusted to me. Dear E. had a quiet night, 
although he did not sleep much during the first part. This 
experience is. indeed, the most trying ; but I hope to be able to 
say truly. • Thy will be done.' Your friend, 

"A. L. 

" C. n. PiRKES, Esq." 

The trying experience alluded to was the serious 
illness of his youngest son, Kobert, then a member of 
Harvard College. He had for some time been troubled 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDEXCE. 205 

by a cough, Avhicli had now become ahirming, and 
excited the worst apprehensions of his friends. In 
rehition to this sickness, he writes several letters to his 
sou, from which the following extracts are made : 

" October 15. 

" We are in great anguish of spirit on account of dear R. 

We are getting reconciled to parting with the dear child, and to 

feel that he has done for us -nhat any parents might feel thankful 

for, by living a good life, and in nineteen years giving us no 

cause to ivisli any one of them blotted out. If now called away, 

he will have lived a long life in a few years, and will be spared 

the trials and sufferings that flesh is heir to, and will be gathered 

hke early fruit, before the blight or frost or mildew has marked 

it." ^ 

" October 29. 

" R. remains gi-adually failing with consumption. l)ut without 
much suffering, and perfectly aware of his situation. He never 
appeared so lovely as he has on his sick bed ; so that his happy 
sphit and resignation, without a complaint or a wish that any- 
thing had been done differently, keep us as happy as we can be 
under such a weight of apprehension that we may so soon part 
with him. He asked me yesterday what I shoull write to you 
about him. I told him I should say that he was very sick, and 
might never be any better ; but that he might also be better if the 
great Physician saw best, as it is only for him to speak, and the 
disease would be cured. If he were taken before me, I told him, 
it would be, I hoped, to welcome me to the company of the loved 
ones of our kinched and friends who have gone before, and to the 
society of angels and just men made perfect, who compose the 
great congregation that are gathered there from all the world, 



206 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

that God's love, through Christ, has redeemed. God so loved 
the -fforld that he gave his only-begotten Son to redeem it from 
sin ; and his teachings should not be lost on us, while we have 
power to profit by them. In this spirit, we talked of the good 
men whose writings have an influence in helping on this good 
work ; and especially we talked of Dr. Doddi-idge, and his ' Rise 
and Progress.' 

" p. HI. — I have been with M. to Brookline since writing the 
above. The falling leaves teach a beautiful lesson. The green 
leaf, the rose, the cypress, now enclosed to you, and all from 
your grounds, are instructive. These were cut within the last 

two hours." 

" November 1. 

" Dear R. had a trying day yesterday, and we thought might 
not continue through the night. He is still alive, and may con- 
tinue some time ; was conscious and clear in his mind after he 
revived yesterday ; feels ready and willing and hoping to be with 

his Saviour." 

" NoTcmbev 14. 

" We toil for treasure through our years of active labor, and, 
when acquired, are anxious to have it well secured against the 
time when we or our children may have need of it ; and we feel 
entire confidence in this security. We allow the common flurries 
of the world to pass by without disturliing our quiet or comfort 
essentially. What treasure of a temporal character is comparable 
with a child who is everything a Christian parent could desire, 
and who is just coming into mature life universally respected and 
beloved, and who is taken before any cloud or spot has touched 
him, and who has left bright and clear marks upon those who have 
come within his sphere of influence ? Such was R. The green 
eaxth of Mount Auburn covers his mortal remains : the heavens 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 207 

above have his immortal ; he was a ripe child of God, and I there- 
fore feel that blessed assurance of entire security which adds 
another charm to that blessed company to which I hope, through 
mercy, to be admitted in our Father's own good time. This early 
death of our beloved youngest comes upon us as an additional les- 
son, necessary, without doubt, to prepare us for our last summons ; 
and the reasons which now seem mysterious will be fully under- 
stood, and will show us that our good required this safe keeping 
of this treasure, so liable to be made our idol. R. had passed the 
dangerous period of his college life without blemish, and was only 
absent from prayers three times (which were for good cause), and 
had a settled purpose, from the beginning of his college life, so to 
conduct in all respects as to give his parents no cause for anxiety ; 
and, for the last year, I have felt perfectly easy in regard to him. 
We have visited his grave to-day. The teachings there are such 
as speak to the heart with an eloquence that language cannot. 
Dear S. and R. ! She the only daughter, he the only son of his 
mother ! and both placed there since you left ! " 

" November 22. 
" President H., in a letter a few days before I wrote to you, 
had this sentiment : ' The old oak, shorn of its green branches, is 
more liable to decay.' Applying this to the old oak fronting the 
graves of those loved ones who have passed on, the outspread 
branches of which make the spot more lovely, I was more deeply 
impressed than mere words could have impressed me. A few 
months after the death of S., a violent storm tore ofif a main limb 
of the old oak about midway between the ground and the top, in 
such way as to mar its beauty, and endanger its life. The limb 
fell upon the graves, but avoided the injury to the monuments 
which might have been expected. Since then, I noticed that some 



208 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

of the lower liinbs cast a sort of blight or mildew upon the pure 

■white of your mother's monument, and they required dressing. 

I desired the ' master ' to do this, and also to come and heal the 

-wound occasioned by the loss of this main limb on that side of the 

tree. The trimming out was done at once ; the other was left 

undone until the request was renewed. On my visit there last 

week, I discovered, for the first time, that the wound had been 

healed, and the body of the tree appeared smooth, and of its 

natural color, and its health such as to give good hope that its 

other branches will spread out their shade more copiously than 

before. What a lesson was here ! The appeal was to the heart ; 

and, in my whole life, I remember none more eloquent. To-day 

I have been to Mount Auburn again ; and the spot seems to be 

' none other than the gate of heaven.' " 

" December 22. 

" Twenty-five years ago this morning, I came home from 
Plymouth, where I had spent the night previous, and heard Web- 
ster's great address. He has never done anything to surpass it ; 
and it now is a model and a text for the youth of our country. 
The people who then were present are pi-incipally taken hence ; 
and the consideration of how the time allowed has been spent, and 
how it now flires with us, is of deep interest. God in mercy 
grant us to act our part so as to meet his approval, when called to 
answer for the trust in our hands ! I have thought of the 
emblem of the ' old oak,' till it has assumed a beauty almost 
beyond anything in nature ; and, if I live to see the fresh leaves 
of spring spreading their covering over the head of the stranger 
or the friend who may stop under its shade, I will have a sketch 
of the spot painted, if the right person can be found. There is 
in the spot and scene a touching eloquence that language can 
scarcely communicate. The dear child's expressive look, and 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 209 

motion of his finger, when he said ' I am going up,' will abide 
with me while I live. The dealings of a Father with me have 
been marked, but ofttimes mysterious for a season. Now many 
things are clear ; and all others will be, I trust, when I am fitted 
to know them." 

(to niS GRANDSON.) 

" Boston, December 30, 1845. 
" My dear F. : Your charming letter of 28th November 
reached me by last steamer, and showed, in a practical way, how 
important the lessons of childhood are to the proper performance 
of the duties of manhood. It carried me back to the time when 
my own mother taught me, and, from that period, forward 
through the early lessons inculcated upon your father, and 
especially to the time when he began to write me letters, which I 
always encouraged him in, and thus formed a habit which has 
been the best security for our home aiiections that can be devised 
when separated from those most dear to us. If the prayers and 
labors of your ancestors are answered by youi' good progress and 
good conduct in the use of the privileges you enjoy, you will 
come forth a better and more useful man than any of the genera- 
tions preceding ; for you enjoy advantages that none of us have 
enjoyed. My heart beats quicker and stronger whenever I think 
of you ; and my prayers ascend for you at all hours, and through 
every scene connecting us. Last Saturday, I had the first sleigh- 
ride of the season. The day was beautiful ; and there was just 
snow enough to make the sleigh run smoothly. I visited Mount 
Auburn ; and the day and place, the ' old oak ' standing in front 
of our graves leafless and apparently almost lifeless, spoke to me 
a language as intelligible as if utterance had been given in 
sovinds. I thought of you, dear F., as my eldest grandson, and 
27 



210 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE, 

in a maimer the representative of the family to future times, and 
asked myself whether I was doing all I ought to make you feel 
the force of your trusts. There lie the mortal parts of your dear 
aunt and uncle, both placed there since you left home ; and the 
spirits of both, I trust, are now rejoicing with the multitude of 
the beloved ones, whose work here is well done, and whom the 
Saviour has bid to ' come unto him,' and through whom they 
hoped to be accepted. Dear R. seems to call to iis to ' come up ; ' 
and, whether I ever see you again or not, I pray you never to 
forget that he was such an uncle as you might well feel anxious 
to copy in your conduct to your pai-ents ; for he had a settled 
principle to do nothing to cause his parents an.xicty. So, if you 
see your young companions indulging in any evil practices which 
may lead to bad habits, avoid them ; for prevention is better than 
remedy. When you stand near the 'old oak,' whether its 
branches are green with shady leaves, or dry from natural decay, 
let it speak to your conscience, ' Come up,' and receive the reward 
promised to the faithful. 

" Ever your affectionate grandfather, A. L." 

The year 1845 closed with many sad recollections ; 
and nearly every letter vrritten at this period dwells 
upon the moiirni'ul events which had marked its course. 
In one letter, he says, " Death has cut right and left 
in my family." In a little more than twelve months, 
ten of his own immediate family and near connections 
were removed, and most of them when least expected. 
Although bowed down, and penetrated with grief at 
each successive blow, there was a deep-seated principle 
in Mr. Lawrence's heart, which made him rise above 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 211 

them iill, and receive each call in that spirit of submis- 
sion which the Christian faith alone can give. His 
own sorrows seemed only to augment his sympathy for 
the woes of others, and to excite him to renewed efforts 
in the great cause of charity and truth, to which he 
had consecrated every talent he possessed. In this 
spirit he makes an entry in his memorandum-hook on 
the first day of the opening year. 



CHAPTEE XXIV. 

EXPENDITURES. — LETTERS. — DONATION FOR LIBRARY AT WILLIAMS 
COLLEGE. — VIEWS ON STUDY OF ANATOMY. 

^^ January 1, 1846. — The business of the past year has beeu 
very prosperous in our country ; and my own duties seem more 
clearly pointed out than ever before. What am I left here for, 
and the young branches taken home ? Is it not to teach me the 
danger of being unfaithful to my trusts ? Dear R. taken ! the 
delight of my eyes, a treasure secured ! which explains better 
than in any other way what my Father sees me in need of I 
hope to be faithful in applying some of my trusts to the uses God 
manifestly explains to me by his dealings. I repeat, ' Thy will 
be done.' " 

That his trusts, so far as the use of his property 
■was concerned, were faithfully performed, may be 
inferred from the fact that, in July, or at the termina- 
tion of the half-year, in making up his estimate of 
income and expenditures, he remarks that the latter 
are nearly twenty thousand dollars in advance of the 
former. 

Mr. Lawrence was often much disturbed by the pub- 
licity which attended his benevolent operations. There 
are, perhaps, thousands of the recipients of his favors 

212 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 213 

now living, wlio alone are cognizant of liis bounty 
towards themselves ; but when a public institution 
became the subject of his liberality, the name of the 
donor could not so easily be concealed. The following 
letter Avill illustrate the mode which he sometimes was 
obliged to adopt to avoid that publicity ; and it was 
his custom not unfrequently to contribute liberally to 
objects of charity through some person on whom he 
wished the credit of the donation to fall. 

(to president HOPKINS.) 

" Boston-, Jan. 26, 1846. 
" My dear Friexd : Since Saturday, I have thought much 
of the best mode of helping your college to a library building 
without getting into the newspapers, and have concluded that 
you had better assume the responsibility of building it ; and, if 
anybody objects that you can't aiford it, you may say you have 
friends whom you hope to have aid from ; and I will be respons- 
ible to you for the cost to an amount not exceeding five thousand 
dollars ; so that you may feel at liberty to prepare such a build- 
ing as you will be satisfied with, and which will do credit to your 
taste and judgment fifty years hence. If I am taken before this is 
finished, which must be this year, my estate will be answerable, 
as I have made an entry in my book, stating the case. I had 
written a longer story, after you left me, on Saturday evening, 
but have laid it aside to hand you this, with best wishes, and that 
all may be done 'decently and in order.' I will pay a thousand 
or two dollars whenever it is wanted for the work. 

"Your friend, A. L." 

Mr. Lawrence had read in the newspapers the 



214 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

memorial to Congress of Mrs. Martha Gray, widow of 
Captain Eobert Gray, the well-known navigator, who 
discovered, first entered, and gave its present name to 
the Columbia River. Captain Gray had been in the 
naval service of his country ; and his widow, who had 
survived him for forty years, amidst many difficulties 
and struggles for support, petitioned for a pension, in 
consideration of the important discovery, and for the 
services rendered by her husband. Mr. Lawrence 
sent to Mrs. Gray a memorial of his regard, with the 
following note : 

"Asa token of respect to the ■widow of one whose name and 
fame make a part of the property of every American who has a 
true heart, will Mrs. Gray accept the accompanying trifle from 
one, who, though personally imknown, felt her memorial to 
Congress through every nerve, and will hope to be allowed the 
pleasure of paying his respects in person when his health 
permits." 

About the same date, he says to President Hopkins : 

" I am happily employed, these days, in administering upon my 
own earnings, and have hope of hearing soon from you and your 
good W'Ork. I am still on my good behavior, but have been able 
to chat a little with Mr. D., and administer to His Excellency 
Governor Briggs, who has had a severe trial of fever and ague. 
On Saturday he rode an hour with me, and returned with his 
face shortened considerably. I can only say to you that I believe 
I am left here to do something more to improve and help on the 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 215 

brethren and sons who have more mind and less money than I 
have ; but the precise way to do it is not so clear to me as it may 
be by and by." 

After receiving the proposed plan of the library 
which he had authorized to he built at Williams Col- 
lege, Mr. Lawrence writes to the same, on May 15 : 

" I left off, after a brief note to you, three hours since, fur- 
nishing you a text on epicm-eanism to preach from, which I trust 
will find favor and use. 

"What think you? Why, that I am interfering in your 
business. When I awoke this morning, thinks I to myself, My 
friend won't have elbow-room in the centre of his octagon ; and, 
as there is plenty of land to build upon, he may as well make his 
outside to outside fifty feet as forty-four feet, and thus give him- 
self more space in the centre. The alcoves appear to me to be 
very nice ; and, in the matter of expense, my young friend A. L. 
H. will see to that, to the tune of one or two thousand dollars. 
So you may feel yourself his representative in acting in this 
matter." 



"April 22. — -My birth-day! Three-score years old! My 
life, hanging by a thread for years, and apparently, at times, 
within a few hours of its close, still continued, while so many 
around in the prime of life and vigor have been called away ! " 

(to a friend.) 

" Tremont-street, April, 1846. 

"My friend : I have arisen after my siesta, and, as 

the Quakers say, am moved by the spii'it to speak. So you will 



21G DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

give Tvliat I have to say the value you consider it worth. And, in 
the first place, I will say, that this period of the year is so full 
of deeply-interesting memories of the past, that I hardly know 
where to begin. From my earliest days, the story of the intelli- 
gence reaching Groton at ten o'clock on the 19th April, 1775, 
that the British were coming, was a most interesting one. My 
father mounted Gen. Prescott's horse, and rode, at a speed which 
young men even of the present day would think rapid, to the 
south end of the town, by Sandy Pond, and notified the minute- 
men to assemble at the centre of the town forthwith. He made 
a range of seven miles, calling on all the men, and was back at 
his father's house in forty minutes. At one o'clock, p. M., the 
company was in readiness to march, and under way to Concord 
to meet the British. They kept on until they reached Cam- 
bridge ; but, before that, they had seen and heard all that had 
been done by the troops sent out to Concord. The plough was 
left in the field ; and my grandfather, with his horse and wagon, 
brought provisions to his neighbors and his son shortly after. My 
grandmother on my mother's side, then living in Concord, has 
described to me over and over again the appearance of the 
British, as she first saw them coming over the hill from Lincoln, 
about two miles from the centre of Concord ; the sun just rising ; 
and the red coats, glittering muskets, and fearful array, so capti- 
vating to us in peace-times, appearing to her as the angel of 
destruction, to be loathed and hated. She therefore left her house 
with her children (the house was standing within the last thirty 
years, and may be now, near the turn to go through Bedford, 
half a mile or more this side of Concord meeting-house), and went 
through the fields, and over the hills, to a safe place of retreat. 
The British, you are aware, on their retreat, had a hard time of 
it. They were shot down like wild game, and left by the way- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE, 217 

side to die or be taken up as it might happen. Three thus left 
•within gun-shot of my grandmother's house were taken up, and 
died in the course of a very few hours. But what I am coming to 
is this : Lord Percy, you know, was sent out from Boston with 
a strong body of troops to protect those first sent out ; and, but 
for this, the whole would have been destroyed or made prisoners. 
About three years ago. Lord Prudhoe, second son of Lord Percy, 
was here ; and I had considerable delightful intercourse with him. 
He, as you may well suppose, was deeply interested in all that 
related to his father ; and I met him in the liln'ary at Cambridge, 
where he was vei'y oljservant of the order and arrangement, and 
especially of the curious old documents and books, so nicely 
arranged, touching the early history of the province. After leav- 
ing Cambridge, he went to Mr. Cushing's and Mr. Pratt's, at 
Watertown, and was much interested in all that we in this city 
are proud of I had not strength to be devoted to him more than 
an hour or two at a time, having then some other strangers under 
my care, belonging to Gov. Colebrooke's family, Lady Colebrooke 
being a niece of IMajor Andre ; so that I had only some half- 
dozen interviews with him, all of which were instructive and 
interesting." 

The dissection of liuuian bodies by medical students 
has always been a subject of deep-rooted prejudice in 
New England ; and, even to this day, it exists in so 
great a degree that the facilities for tliis important and 
absolutely essential branch of instruction are not nearly 
as great as they should be, nor such as are aiforded in 
the schools of other countries. When these difficulties 
shall be removed, and the prejudice allayed against the 

28 



218 DIARY AND COKRESPONDENCE. 

acquisition of a kind of knowledge which it is of the 
utmost interest to every one that the surgeon and 
physician shall receive, many young men will remain 
at home, and acquire that education which, with few 
exceptions, might be attained here as well as by a resort 
to foreign schools. In this prejudice Mr. Lawrence 
could not sympathize, as will be seen in the following 
extract of a letter to a friend : 

*J[, jl, J{, JL. Jl. 

-Tf' -Tf- ^ Tt" "R- 

"Many years ago, there was a great stir, on account of graves 
being robbetl for sulijects for dissection, and some laws were 
passed : the want became so pressing, that subjects were brought 
from a long distance, and in a very bad state. Dr. Warren was 
attending me, and said he had mvited tlie Legishxture, then in 
session, to attend a lecture in the Medical College. He told me 
he intended to exphiin the necessity of having fit subjects, he 
having been poisoned in his lecture to his students a few days 
before, and was then suffering from it. He invited me also to 
attend, which I did, and took with me my precious boy R. 
While lecturing, the doctor had a man's hand, which he had just 
taken off at tlie hospital, brought in, nicely wrapped up in a wet 
cloth, by his son J. M. W., then a youngster. There were 
present about two hundred representatives ; and, as soon as they 
saw the real hand, two or three fainted nearly away, and a half- 
dozen or more made their escape from the room. The scene was 
so striking, that I told Dr. Warren it was a pity that such a 
prejudice should exist ; and, as I was desirous to be of use as far 
as in my power, and probably should be a good subject for him, I 
would gladly have him use me in the way to instruct the young 
men ; but to take care of my remains, and have them consumed 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 219 

or buried, unless mj bones were kept. I also told him that I 
desired very much to have this false feeling corrected, and per- 
haps my example might do sometliing toward it. Some time 

afterwards, I spoke to upon the subject ; but I found it gave 

pain, and the plan was given up. * * * A. L." 

" Outward gains are ordinarily attended with inward losses. 
He indeed is rich in grace whose graces are not liindered by 
his riches." 

In a letter, dated June 3, Mr. Lawrence bears testi- 
mony to the character and services of the late Louis 
Dwight, so long and favorably known as the zealous 
Secretary of the Massachusetts Prison Discipline 
Society : 

" I have this moment had an interview with Louis Dwight, 
who leaves for Europe in two days. My labors and experience 
with him for nearly a quarter of a century enable me to testify to 
his ability, and unceasing efforts in the cause." 

" May 27, 1846. — The following commentary * on the Lec- 
tures of the Rev. Dr. accompanied their return to me 

from one to whom I had loaned the volume. I have now no 
recollection who the person is ; but the words are full, and to the 
point : 

" ' This sucking the marrow all out of our Bible, and leaving 
it as dry as a husk, pray what good to man, or honor to God, 
does that do ? If we are going to fling away the old book from 
which ten thousand thousand men have drawn and are still draw- 

* Supposed to be by Hon. Jeremiah Mason. 



220 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

ing the life of their souls, then let us stand boldly up, and fling 
it away, cover and all ; unless, indeed, a better way would be to 
save the boards and gilding, and make a family checker-board 
of it.' " 



CHAPTER XXV. 

DONATION TO LAWRENCE ACADEMY. — CORKESPONDENCE WITH 
R. G.PARKER. — SLEIGII-RIDES.— LETTERS.— AVERSION TO NOTO- 
RIETY. — CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL. 

Mr. Lawrence had always taken a deep interest in 
the academy at Groton, of which he, with all his 
brothers and sisters, had been members. The resi- 
dence of his former master, James Brazer, Esq., 
with whom he lived when an apprentice, bordered on 
the academy grounds. It was a large, square, old- 
fa.shioned house, and easily convertible to some useful 
purpose, whenever the growing prosperity of the insti- 
tution should require it. He accordingly purchased the 
estate ; and, in July, 1846, presented it to the Board 
of Trustees by a deed, with the following preamble : 

" To all persons to wliom these presents shall come, I, Amos 
Lawrence, of the City of Boston, in the County of Suffolk, and 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Esquire, send greeting : 

" Born and educated in Groton, in the County of Middlesex, in 
said Commonwealth, and deeply interested in the welfare of that 
town, and especially of the Lawrence Academy, established in it 
by my honored father, Samuel Lawrence, and his worthy associ- 
ates, and grateful for the benefits which his and their descendants 

221 



222 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

have derived from that institution, I am desirous to promote its 
future prosperity ; trusting tliat those charged with the care and 
superintendence of it ivill ever strive zealously and faithfully to 
maintain it as a nursery of piety and sound learning." 

This had been preceded by a donation of two thou- 
sand dolhirs, with smaller gifts, at various dates, of 
valuable books, a telescope, etc., besides the foundation 
of several free scholarships. The present prosperity of 
the academy is, however, mainly due to his brother, 
William Lawrence, who has been by far its greatest 
benefactor ; having, in 1844, made a donation of ten 
thousand dollars, followed by another, in 1846, of five 
thousand, and, finally, by will, bequeathed to it the 
sum of twenty thousand. The following memoranda 
are copied from Mr. Lawrence's donation-book : 

^^ August 20, 1847. — I have felt a deep interest in Groton 
Academy for a long time ; and while brother L. was living, and 
its president, he had it in charge to do what should be best to 
secure its greatest usefulness, and, while perfecting these plans, he 
was suddenly taken from this world. Since then, I have kept on 
doing for it ; which makes my outlay for the school about twenty 
thousand dollars. I had prepared ten thousand dollars more, which 
brother William has assumed, and has taken the school upon him- 
self, to give it such facilities as will make it a very desirable place 
for young men to enter to get a good preparation for business or 
college life." 

In an address * delivered at the jubilee celebration 

* See account of Jubilee of Lawrence Academy. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 223 

of the Lawrence Academy, held in Groton, July 12, 
1854, the Rev. James Means, a former preceptor of the 
Institution, thus speaks of the benefactions of the two 
brothers : 

" It vras my good fortune, after becoming the preceptor, in 
1845, to have frequent intercourse with them in this particular 
regard, — the interests of the school. I shall never foro;et the im- 
pression made upon my mind by the depth of their feeling, and the 
strength of their attachment. They were both of them men of 
business ; had been trained to business habits, and would not fool- 
ishly throw away the funds which God had intrusted to them aa 
stewards. But it seemed to me then, as the event has proved, 
that they were willing to go as far as they could see their way 
clear Ijefore them to establish this school on a foundation that 
never should be shaken. 

'' There was a singular difference in the character of these two 
brothers, and there is a similar difference in the results of their 
benefactions. I have reason personally to know that they con- 
ferred frequently and earnestly respecting the parts which they 
should severally perform in upbuilding this school. There was an 
emulation ; but there was no selfislmess, there was no difference of 
opinion. Both loved the academy, both wished to bless it and 
make it a blessing ; each desired to accommodate the feelings of 
the other, each was unwilling to interfere with the other, each 
was ready to do what the other declined. Out of more than forty- 
five thousand dollars provided for the academy by Mr. William 
Lawrence, forty thousand still remain in the hands of the trustees 
for purposes of instruction. Of the library Mr. Amos Lawrence 
says, in one of his letters : ' I trust it will be second to no other in 
the country except that of Cambridge, and that the place will 



224 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

become a favorite resort of students of all ages before another fifty 
years have passed away. When he presented a cabinet of medals, 
he writes, ' I present them to the Institution in the name of my 
grandsons, F. W. and A. L., in the hope and expectation of im- 
planting among their early objects of regard this school, so dear 
to us brothers of the old race, and which was more dear to our 
honored father, who labored with his hands, and gave from his 
scanty means, in the beginning, much more in proportion than 
■we are required to do, if we place it at the head of this class of 
institutions, by furnishing all it can want.' " 

At the same celebration, the Hon. John P. Bigelow, 
president of the day, in his opening address, said : 

" Charles Sprague, so loved and so honored as a man and a 
poet, was an intimate friend of the lamented William and Amos 
Lawrence. I invited him hitlier to-day. He cannot come, )jut 
sends a minstrel's tribute to their memory, from a harp, which, till 
now, has been silent for many years. 

' Tlicso, these no marble columns need: 
Their monument is in the deed ; 
A moral pyramid, to stand 
As Ions as wisdom lights the land. 
The granite pillar shall decay, 
The chisel's beauty pass away ; 
But this shall last, in strength sublime, 
Unshaken through the storms of time.' " 

On July 15, Mr. Lawrence made a considerable 
donation of books to the Johnson School for girls, 
accompanied by a note to R. G. Parker, Esq., the 
Principal, from which the following extract is taken : 



DIART AND CORRESPONDENCE. 225 

"The sleigh-ride comes to me as though daguerreo typed, and I 
can hardly realize that I am here to enjoy still further the com- 
fort that I then enjoyed. If the pupils of your school at that 
time Tvcre gratified, I was more than satisfied, and feel myself a 
debtor to your school of this day ; and, in asking you to accept, 
for the use of the five hundred dear girls who attend upon your 
instruction, such of the books accompanying as you think proper 
for them, I only pay a debt which I feel to be justly due. The 
Johnson School is in my own district ; and many a time, as I 
have passed it in my rides, have I enjoyed tlie appropriate anima- 
tion and glee they have manifested in their gambols and sports 
during their intermission, and have felt as though I would gladly 
be among them to encourage them. Say to them, although per- 
sonally unknown, I have looked on, and felt as though I wanted 
to put my hand upon their heads, and give them a word of 
counsel, encouragement, and my blessing. This is what I am left 
here for ; and, when the Master calls, if I am only well enough 
prepared to pass examination, and receive the ' Well done ' prom- 
ised to such as are faithful, then I may feel tliat all things here 
are less than nothing in comparison to the riches of the future." 

The allusion to the sleigh-ride was called forth by a 
note received from Mr. Parker a day or two before, in 
which that gentleman writes : 

" As you have not the credit of a very good memory, so fiir 
as your own good actions are concerned, it will be proper that I 
should remind you that the occasion to which I refer was the time 
that the pupils of the Franklin School were about enjoying a 
sleigh-ride, from which pleasure a large number were excluded. 
On that occasion, as you were riding by, you were induced to 
29 



226 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

inquire the reason of the exclusion of so many sad little faces ; 
and, on learning that their inability to contriljute to the expense 
of the excursion would cause them to be left behind, you very 
generously directed that all should be furnished with seats, and a 
draft made upon you for the additional expense." 

To a fondness for children, there seemed to he united 
in Mr. Lawrence a constant desire to exert an influence 
upon tlie youthful- mind ; and rarely was the oppor- 
tunity passed over, when, by a word of advice or 
encouragement, or the gift of an appropiiate book, he 
thought he could effect his object. His person was 
well known to the boys and girls who passed him in 
the streets ; and, in the winter season, his large, open 
sleigh might often be seen filled with his youthful 
friends, whom he had allowed to crowd in to the 
utmost capacity of his vehicle. 

The acquaintances thus made would often, by his 
invitation, call to see him at his residence, and there 
would receive a kind notice, joined with such words of 
encouragement and advice as could not sometimes fail 
to have a lasting and beneficial influence. 

^'^ August 2. — 'Give an account of thy steivai-dship, for thou 
mayest be no longer steward.' — Luke 16 : 2. 

" How ought this to bo sounded in our cars ! and how ought 
we to be influenced by the words ! Surely there can be no 
douljle meaning here. The words are emphatic, clear, and of vast 
concern to every man. Let us profit hy them while it is day, lest 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 227 

the night overtake us, when we can no longer do the work of the 
day." 

On the 22d of August, Mr. Lawrence sent a cane 
to Governor Briggs, at Pittsfield, with the following 
inscription graven upon it : 

FROM THE "OLD OAK" OF MOINT AUBUKN : 
3 fHcmrnto of JLoUcft iDncs gone ifforf. 

AMOS LAWRENCE TO GEORGE N. BRIGGS. 
1840. 

The cane was accompanied by the following note : 

" My dear Friend : Your letter of Monday last came, as all 
your letters do, just right as a comforter through a feeble week ; 
for I have l^een confined to the house, and unable to speak above 
a whisper, most of the time, and am still not allowed to talk or 
work much. The corresponding week of the last year, when our 
precious R. was your guest, comes over my mind and heart, at all 
hours of the night and the day, in a manner I need not attempt 
to describe to yon ; and it is only distressing when I see the suf- 
fering of his dear mother. But we feci that he is now the guest 
of the Supreme Governor, whose care and kindness takes from 
him all that can interrupt his perfect happiness through all time ; 
and this surely ought to satisfy us. The good opinion of good 
men you know how to value, and can therefore judge how much I 
prize yours. Acting upon the public mind for good as you do, 
the memorial from the old oak will not be without its use in your 
instruction and advice to the young, whose special improvement 
and safety you have so much at heart. The cane is a part of the 
same branch as that sent to President H., and came to me since 



228 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

noon to-day. Accept it ^vith assurances of continued and 
increased affection and respect. Most sincerely yours, 

"A. L." 

" August 28. — Called at shop, Wasliington-street, and 

there saw a nice-looking boy seventeen or eighteen years old, 
named T. S., to whom I gave a word of good counsel and encour- 
agement. Shall look after him a little, as I like his manners." 

" August 29. — A woman writes a figuring letter, calling her- 
self S. M. ; says she is sixty years old ; has lost her sons, and 
wants help ; came from New Hampshire. Also, N. T. wants aid 
to study, or something else. Also, a Mr. F., with a great share 
of hair on his face, gold ring, and chains, wants to travel for his 
health ; has a wife and child. These three cases within twenty- 
four hours are very forliidding." 

In a letter of advice to a young gentleman who was 
a stranger to him, but who through a mutual friend 
had asked his opinion on a matter of business, he 
writes, on Sept. 19th : 

" Your letter of the 17th is a flattering token of confidence 
and respect, that I wish were better merited. Such as I am, I 
am at your service ; hut there is nothing of me. I have been 
sti icken down within a few days, and am hardly able to stand up. 
A kind Father keeps me vigilant by striking without notice, and 
when least expected ; and on some one of these occasions I am to 
close the account of my stewardship, and no matter when, if the 
accounts are right. I cannot advise you except in one particular : 
Do with your might what your hands find to do ; spend no man's 
money but your own, and look carefully after little items that 
tempt you." 



DIARY AND COKRESPONDENCE. 229 

The notoriety attendant upon acts of beneficence 
which Mr. Lawrence instinctively shrunk from, and 
which so often deters the sensitive from the good acts 
wliich, without this penalty, they would gladly per- 
form, was, as has before been stated, a subject of 
serious annoyance. This is illustrated by the following 
note, written to Mr. Parker, the Principal of the 
Johnson School for girls : 

" October 2, 1846. 
" I hope to send a few volumes to help forward the young 
guides of the mind and heart of the sons of New England, 
wherever they may be ; for it is the mothers who act upon their 
sons more than all others. I hope to Ise felt as long as I am able 
to work, and am quite as vain as I ought to be of my name and 
fame, but am really afraid I shall wear out my welcome if my 
little paragraphs are printed so frequently in the newspapers. I 
gave some books last ^londay, and saw them acknowledged yes- 
terday in the newspaper, and since have received the letter from 
the children. Now, my dear sir, I merely want to say, that I 
hope you will not put me in the newspaper at present; and, 
when my work is done here, if you have anything to say about 
me that will not hurt my children and grandchildren, sai/ on." 

A few days afterwards, Mr. Lawrence received a 
letter from the parties to whom the books above alluded 
to had been sent, inquiring if he could suggest the 
name of some benevolent individual, to whom applica- 
tion might be made for aid in furthering the objects of 
the Association. He writes : 



230 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" In reply to yours of to-day, I know of no one, but must 
request that my name be not thrust forwai'd, as though I ^as to 
be a byword for my vanity. I want to do good, but am sorry to 
be published, as in the recent case." 

During the autumn of this year, ]\Ir. Lawrence pur- 
chased the large building in Mason-street, which had, 
for many years, been used as the Medical School of 
Harvard College, with the intention of founding a 
charitable hospital for children. He had heard of the 
manner in which such institutions were conducted in 
France, and believed that a great benefit would be con- 
ferred on the poorer classes by caring for their sick 
children when their own poverty or occupations pre- 
vented their giving them that attention which could be 
secured in an institution of this kind. The great 
object was to secure the confidence of that class, and to 
overcome their repugnance to giving up their children 
to the care of others. The plan had not been tried in 
this country ; though in France, where there exists a 
much larger and more needy population, the system 
was completely successful. Although but an experi- 
ment, Mr. Lawrence considered the results which 
might be obtained of sufficient magnitude to warrant 
the large outlays required. He viewed it not only as 
a mode of relieving sickness and suffei-ing, but as a 
means of exercising a humanizing effect upon those 
who should come directly under its influence, as weU as 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 231 

upon that class of persons generally for whose benefit it 
was designed. His heart was ever open to the cry of 
suffering ; and he was equally ready to relieve it, 
whether it came from native or foreigner, bond or free. 
The building which had been purchased for the object, 
from its internal arrangement, and from its too confined 
position, was found less suitable than another, in the 
southerly part of the city, where an open view and 
ample grounds were more appropriate for the purpose ; 
while there was no cause for that prejudice which, it 
was found, existed toward the project in the situation 
first thought of. With characteristic liberality, Mr. 
Lawrence offered the Medical College, now not re- 
quired, to the Boston Society of Natural History at the 
cost, with a subscription from himself of five thousand 
dollars. The offer was accepted. An effort was made 
by the Society to raise by subscription the necessary 
funds ; and the result was their possession of the 
beautiful building since occupied by their various col- 
lections in the different departments of natural history. 
The large house on Washington-street was soon put 
in complete repair, suitably furnished, provided with 
physicians and nurses, and opened as the Children's 
Infirmary, with accommodations for thirty patients. 
The following spring was marked by a great degree of 
mortality and suffering among the emigrant passengers, 
and consequently the beds were soon occupied by whole 
families of children, who arrived in the greatest state 



232 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

of destitution and misery. Many cases of sliip-fever 
were admitted ; so that several of the attendants were 
attacked by it, and the service became one of consider- 
able danger. Many now living in comfort attribute the 
preservation of their life to the timely succor then fur- 
nished ; and, had no other benefits followed, the good 
bestowed during the few weeks of spring would have 
compensated for the labor and cost. This institution 
continued in operation for about eighteen months, dur- 
ing which time some hundreds of patients were pro- 
vided for. The prejudices of parents, which had been 
foreseen, were found to exist, but disappeared with the 
benefits received ; and the whole experiment proved 
conclusively that such an institution may be sustained 
in this community with vast benefit to a large class of 
the suffering ; and it is hoped that it may one day lead 
to an establishment of the kind on a larger scale, and 
with a more extensive organization and means of use- 
fulness. In this experiment, it was found, from the 
limited number of beds, that the cost of each patient 
was much greater than if four times the number had 
been provided for, and so large that Mr. Lawrence 
decided that the same amount of money could be made 
to afford relief to much larger numbers of the same 
class of sufferers applied in some other way. He was 
a constant visitor at the Infirmary, and took a deep 
interest in many of the patients, whose varied history 
had been recited to him ; and in after years, as he 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 233 

passed through the streets, many an eye would brighten 
as it caught a glimpse of the kind friend who had' 
whispered words of consolation and hope in the lonely 
hours of sickness. 

80 



CHAPTER XXVI. 

CAPTAIN A. S. MoKENZIE. — DIARY. — AID TO IRELAND. — MADAM 
PRESCOTT. — SIR WILLIAM COLEBROOKE. 

(to CAPT. ALEXANDER SLIDELL MCKENZIE, V. S. N.) 

" November 2, 1840. 
" My DEAR Sir : I was exceedingly gratified by your kind 
remembrance of me, a few days since, iu sending me a copy of 
your ' Life of Decatur,' ■whicli to its merits as a biography adds 
the charm of bringing before me my old friend Bainbridge, and 
the writer, whom I have felt a strong interest in ever since read- 
ing his ' Year in Spain ; ' for my son resided in the same family 
soon after you left, and made me acquainted with you before I 
had seen you. I am a ' minute-man ' in life, but, while I remain 
here, shall always be glad to take you by the hand when you visit 
us. Whether we meet here is of less importance than that our 
work be done, and be said by the Master to be well done, when 
called off. Respectfully and faithfully yours, 

"A. L." 

"December 17. — Thirty-nine years have passed since my first 
entry in this book ; and, in reviewing this period, I have abun- 
dant reason to bless God for his great mercies, and especially for 
continuing us four brothers, engaged as we have been in business, 
an unbroken band to this day, and for the success attending our 
labors. We have been blessed more than most men, and have the 

234 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 235 

poTver, Ijy our right use of these blessings, of benefiting our fellow- 
men. God grant that the spirits of our parents may be cheered 
in their heavenly home by our doing the work here that we ought 
to do ! To my descendants I commend this memorial, with the 
prayer that they may each of them be better than I am." * * * 
" Fifteen years hence, and the chief interest in us will be found 
in our ilount Auburn enclosure ; and we ought to look well to 
the comment." 

As an expression of the feeling here referred to, he 
purchased a gokl box of beautiful workmanship, and 
forwarded it to his youngest brother, then a resident 
of Lowell, with the following inscription engraven 
upon it : 

"BEHOLD, HOW GOOD AND DOW PLEASANT IT IS FOR BKETUREN TO DWELL 
TOGETHER IN DNITT ! " 

TO SAMUEL LAWRENCE, 

FROM 

niS BROTHER AMOS. 

"December- 19. — Rode to-day to the Asylum for the Blind 
with Major Arthur Lawrence, of the Rifle Brigade, British 
Army, and had a very interesting visit. Dr. Howe veiy atten- 
tive ; and Laura Bridgman and Oliver Caswell both appeared 
well." 

"December 27. — Rev. Mr. Rogers said to-day, ' Gold is not 
the coin of heaven : if it had been, Christ would have been rich ; 
but he was a poor man.' " 

"January 1, 1847. — In July last, I had spent the advance 
of my income, but am thankful now to be able to state the case 
differently, being in the receipt of ample means to be a comfort to 
the needy." 



236 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

From the various entries quoted in his Diary, it will 
be inferred that Mr. Lawrence's means for charitable 
distribution vaiied considerably in amount from year to 
year. To explain this difference, it may not be amiss 
to state here, that he had, from the first efforts to 
establish home manufactures in New England, taken a 
deep interest in their success, and had consequently 
invested a large proportion of his property in the 
various manufacturing corporations which had been 
built up in Lowell and other towns in Massachusetts 
and New Hampsliire. The great fluctuations in this 
department of industry are known to every one ; for, 
while the returns of one year would be ample, those 
of the next year would, from embarrassments in the 
commercial world, or from some other cause, be little 
or nothing. 

^'■January 8. — T. R. and S. J., two Englishmen in the employ 
of J. C, mended our pump to-day. I gave them some books and 
a word of counsel, and hope to ohserve their progress." 

'■'■February 15. — T. J. called, and is to embark to-morrow, on 
his way to the war in Mexico. He asked me to give him money 
to buy a pistol, which I declined, as I could not wish them success 
in Mexico ; but gave him some books, a Bible, and good counsel." 

During the month of February, an appeal was made 
to the citizens of Boston in behalf of the famished popu- 
lation of Ireland, and resulted in the sending to that 
country a large quantity of food and clothing. Mr. 
Lawrence contributed himself towards the object, and, 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 237 

as was often the case, endeavored to interest others 
equally with himself. On the 24th of that month, he 
addressed a note to J. A. Stearns, Esq., Principal of 
the Mather School, at South Boston, for the pupils of 
his school composing the Lawrence Association. This 
Association, comprising a large number of boys and 
girls, had been formed for moral and intellectual 
improvement, and had been named in honor of Mr. 
Lawrence, who had, from its commencement, taken a 
deep interest in its success, and had often contributed 
books and money when needed. 

" Wednesday, March 2. 
"My Friexds: Tlie value of the offering to suffering Ireland 
from our city will be enhanced by the numbers contributing, as 
the offering will do more good as an expression of sympathy than 
as a matter of relief. The spirit of dear R. seems to speak 
through your ' Oak Leaf,' * and to say, ' Let all who will of the 
Association subscribe a half-dollar each, and all others a quarter 
each, for their suffering brethren, and childi-en of a common 
Father.' A. L. 

P. S. — The purses were presents to me, and must be returned. 
One of them from the lady of Sir John Strachan, herself a 
descendant of one of our Boston girls ; the two open-work ones 
from ladies in this city. Take from them wliat is required, 
and return the balance, if any be left. If more is required, let me 
know, as I do not know the amount in the purses. A. L." 

One hundred and two members of the Association, 

* A little newspaper published by the Association. 



238 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

and four liimdred and thirty- eiglit other members of the 
school, in all five hundred and forty, availed them- 
selves of the privilege thus ofl'ered them, and contrib- 
uted the sum of one hundred and sixty dollars towards 
the object. 

At the church in Brattle-street, a collection was 
taken in aid of the same object ; and, among other 
contributions, was a twenty-dollar bank-note, with the 
following attached to it, probably by Mr. Lawrence : 

"A ship of war to carry l)rcad to the hungry and suffering, 
instead of powder and ball to inflict more suffering on our 
brethren. — cliildrcn of the same Father, — is as it should be; 
and this is in aid of the plan." 

Among the most respected and valued friends of Mr. 
Lawrence was the venerable Madam Prescott, widow 
of the late Judge William Prescott, and mother of the 
distinguished historian of "Ferdinand and Isabella." 
Years seemed rather to quicken her naturally warm 
sympathies for the distresses of others ; and, at the age 
of more than four-score, she was to be daily seen on foot 
in the streets, actively engaged upon her errands of 
mercy. Mr. Lawrence had, the year before, found a 
small volume, entitled the " Comforts of Old Age," by 
Sir Thomas Bernard ; and had sent it to several of his 
friends, principally those in advanced age, asking for 
some record of their experience. His note to Madam 
Prescott on this subject was as follows : 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 239 

" Jlarch 8, 1847. 
" Dear Madam Prescott : I have been a long time anxious 
to receive a favor from you, and have felt diflSdent in asking it ; 
but am now at the required state of resolution. The book I send 
you is so much in character with your own life, that my grand- 
children, who love you, will read to their grandchildren your 
words, written by your own hand in this book, if you will but 
place them there. I must beg you, my excellent friend, to 
believe that I am desirous of securing for my descendants some 
of your jirecious encouragements in the discipline of life. 
"Your friend, 

" Amos Lawrence." 



The volume was returned with the following record 



"Boston, March 10, 1847. 
" My DEAR Sir : You ask me what are the comforts of old 
age. I answer, the retrospection of a well-spent life. The man 
who devotes himself to the cause of humanity, who clothes the 
naked, feeds the hungry, soothes the sorrows of the afflicted, and 
comforts the mourner, — whom each rising sun finds in the con- 
templation of some good deed, and each night closes with the 
assurance that it has been performed, — surely such a life must be 
the comfort of an old age. But where shall we find such a man ? 
May I not be permitted to apply the character to my highly 
valued and respected friend, whose charities are boundless, and 
who daily dispenses blessings to all around him ? May the 
enduring oak be emblematical of the continuance of your life ! 
I depend mucli upon accompanying you to Mount Auburn, and to 
visit the spot which contains the precious relies of him whose life 
it is sweet to contemplate, and whose death has taught us how 



240 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

a Christian should die. The penisal of this little volume has 
increased my veneration and friendship for its owner. 
" Respectfully and affectionately, 

" C. G. Prescott." 

"Mem. bij a. L., May 20, 1850.— Madam P., now much 
passed four-score years of age (born August 1, 17<j7), is as 
bright and active in body and mind as most ladies of fifty." 

"April 10. — Mrs. T. called to ask aid for a poor widow, which 
I declined, by telling her I did not hear or read people's stories 
from necessity, and I could not inquire this evening. She claims 

to be acquainted with Rev. Mr. and Rev. Mr. . She 

gave me a severe lecture, and berated me soundly." 

"April 11*. — Mrs. C, of Lowell, asks me to loan her three 
hundred dollars to furnish a boarding-house for twelve young 
ladies at S., which I declined liy mail this morning." 

In reply to Sir William Colebrooke, Governor of New 
Brunswick, who requested Mr. Lawrence to notify cer- 
tain poor people in the neighborhood of Boston that 
their deposits in the Frederickstown Savings' Bank, 
which had been previously withheld, would be paid by 
means of an appropriation for the purpose recently 
made by the Provincial Assembly, he writes : 

" Boston, April 26, 1847. 
" Mt dear Sir "William : Your kind letter of the 8th 
instant reached me on the 13th, and is most welcome and grateful, 
in making me the medium of so much solid comfort to the numer- 
ous people whose earnings are thus restored to them through your 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 241 

unceasing and faithful labors. May God reward you, and enable 
3^ou to enjoy through life the elevated satisfaction that follows 
such good works to those who can give you nothing but their 
prayers ! It is alike creditable to your Provincial Government 
and those true principles which are the best riches of all free 
governments ; and I hope may exercise some good influence upon 
our State Governments, which have done injustice to many poor 
persons who have given credit to their promises. I have caused 
your notice to be scattered broadcast, and trust that all who have 
any interest in the Frederickstown Savings' Bank will know that 
their money and interest are ready for them. Pray present me 
most affectionately to Lady Colebrooke and your daughters ; and 
assure her we shall take more comfort than ever in showing her 
over our beautiful hills, that have health and joy in every breeze. 
My own health continues as good as when you were last here ; 
and my family (who have not been taken hence) seem devoted to 
my comfort. What reason have we for devout thanksgiving, that 
our two countries are not at swords' points, and that the true feel- 
ing of our common ancestry is now sweeping over our land ! We 
are in deep disgrace on account of this wicked Mexican business. 
What the end is to be can only be known to Infinite Wisdom : but 
one thins is certain. — no ffood can come to us from it. 

"Again I pray you to be assured of my highest respect and 
regard, and am very faithfully yours, 

" Amos Lawrence." 
31 



CIIAPTEE XXVII. 

MR. LAWRENCE AS AN APPLICANT. — LETTERS. — DIARY. — PRAYER 
AND MEDITATIONS. — LIBERALITY TO A CREDITOR. — LETTERS. 

It was not uncommon for Mr. Lawrence, when a 
good work was in progress, to give not only his own 
means, but to lend a helping hand by soliciting con- 
tributions from others. The following note, addressed 
to a wealthy bachelor, is a specimen : 

"Boston, June II, 1847. 
" Mt DEAR Sir : You will be surprised at this letter, coming 
as it does as a first ; but I know, from my experience of your skill 
and talents as a business man, how pleasant it is to you to make 
good bargains and safe investments ; and, although you are a 
bachelor, the early business habits you acquired are marked, and 
are to be carried forward till the footing up of the account, and 
the trial-balance presented to the Master at his coming. As I 
said before, you like safe investments, that shall be returned four- 
fold, if such can be made. Now, I am free to say to you, I know 
of such an one ; and the promisor is a more secure one than A. & A. 
L. & Co., Uncle Sam, the Old Bay State, or bonds and mortgages 
in your own neighborhood. You ask, Then why not take it 
yourself ? I answer, Because I have invested in advance in the 
same sort of stock in other quarters, but am willing to give my 
guaranty that you shall be satisfied that it is all I represent when 

242 



DIARY AND COERESPONDENCE. 243 

you make your ijnal settlement. It is this : Amherst College 
you know all about ; and that is now in especial need of new 
instructors, and increased funds for their support. Twenty 
thousand dollars from you will place it on high ground, give a 
name to a professorship, make you feel happier and richer than 
you ever did in your life. What s:iy you ? — will you do it ? The 
respect of good men will be of more value to you through your 
remaining days than any amount of increase, even if as vast as 
Girard's or Aster's. As I am a mere looker-on, you will take 
this, as I design it, as an expression of good-will to the college, 
no less than to you." 

"Mem. by A. L. — Received an answer on the 16th, very 
good and kind, from Mr. ." 

In addition to the " A'eiy good answer," jMr. Law- 
rence had soon after the gratification of l\;nowing that 
the application had been successful, and that the neces- 
sary sum had been contributed by his correspondent. 

About the same date, he writes to his friend, Pro- 
fessor Packard, of Bowdoin College, as follows : 

" Your visit to us the last week has opened new views and 
visions, that are better described in the last chapter of Revelations 
than in any account I can give. Bowdoin College is connected 
with all that is near and dear to President Appleton, — not only 
those on the stage of action with him, but all who came after, 
embracing in this latter class your own loved ones, who may con- 
tinue to exercise an important agency in making the college what 
the good man, in his lifetime, strove to make it. The love, vene- 
ration, and respect, my dear wife had for him, makes her feel a 



244 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

peculiar pleasure in doing wbat would have clieered and comforted 
him so much had he lived till this time. The thousand dollars 
handed to you is a first payment of six thousand that she will give 
to the college in aid of the fund now in progress of collection; and 
she directs tliat the Lawrence Academy, at Groton, may be 
allowed to send one scholar each year to Bowdoin College, to be 
carried through the four years without charge for instruction; 
and that, whenever the trustees of the academy do not supply a 
pupil, the college may fill the place. I will hold myself responsi- 
ble to make good Mrs. L.'s intentions, should she be deprived 
in any way of this privilege before the work is done." 

Early in the summer of thi.s year, the lion. Abbott 
Lawrence made his munificent donation of fifty thousand 
dollars to Harvard College, for the purpose of founding 
what was afterwards called, in honor of the donor, the 
Lawrence Scientific School. After reading the letter 
accompanying this donation, Mr. Lawrence addressed to 
his brother the following : 

" Wednesday morning, June 9, 1847. 
" Dear Brother Abbott : I hardly dare trust myself to 
speak what I feel, and therefore write a word to say that I thank 
God I am spared to this day to see accomplished by one so near 
and dear to me this last best work ever done by one of our name, 
which will prove a better title to true nobility than any from the 
potentates of the world. It is more honorable, and more to be 
coveted, than the highest pohtical station in our country, pur- 
chased as these stations often are by time-serving. It is to 
impress on unborn millions the great truth that our talents are 
trusts committed to us for use. and to be accounted for when the 



DIART AND CORRESPOXDEXCE. 245 

Master calls. This magnificent plan is the great thing that you 
■will see carried out, if your life is spared ; and you may well 
cherish it as the thing nearest your heart. It enriches your 
descendants in a way that mere money never can do, and is a 
better investment than any one you have ever made. 

"Your aSectionate brother, Asios. 

" To Abbott Latvrenxe." 

To a friend he writes, soon after : 

'• This noble plan is worthy of him ; and I can say truly to 
you, that I feel enlarged by his doing it. Instead of our sons 
going to France and other foreign lands for instruction, here will 
be a place, second to no other on earth, for such teaching as our 
country stands now in absolute need of. Here, at this moment, it 
is not in the power of the great railroad companies to secure a 
competent engineer to carry forward their work, so much are the 
services of such men in demand." 



" BosTox, June IS, 1847. 

'■ Dear Partxers : Please pass to the credit of my friend, the 
Rev. Mark Hopkins, two thousand dollars, to j^ay for four schol- 
arships at Williams College, to be used through all time by the 
Trustees of Lawrence Academy, in Groton. The said trustees, or 
their representatives, may send and keep in college four pupils 
from the academy, without any charge for tuition ; and, whenever 
they omit or dechne keeping up tlieir full number, the govern- 
ment or the proper authorities of the college are authorized to fill 
the vacancy or vacancies from their own college pupils. Charge 
the same to my account. A. L. 

" To A. & A. L. & Co." 



246 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE, 

During tlie last twenty years of his life, Mr. Law- 
rence was unable to attend more than the morning 
services of the church on Sunday, on account of the state 
of his health. 

He was a most devout and constant worshipper, and 
many of those who have conducted the religious services 
of the church which he attended Avill well remember 
the upturned countenance, the earnest attention, and 
the significant motions of his head, as he listened with 
an expression of approval to the faithful declarations of 
the speaker. He loved to listen to those who ' ' did not 
shun to declare all the counsel of God," and would 
sometimes express disappointment when the preacher 
failed to declare what ho considered the important 
truths of the Gospel. 

In writing to a friend, after listening to a discourse 
of the latter description from a stranger, he compares 
it, in its adaptation to the spiritual wants of the hearers, 
to the nourishment which a wood-chopper would receive 
by placing him in the top of a flowering tree, and 
allowing him to feed only on the odor of its blossoms. 
His feelings on this subject are expressed in a letter to 
an esteemed clergyman, who had solicited his aid in 
behalf of a church in a distant city. 

" Boston, June 11, 1847. 
" My Friend : I have your letter of yesterday ; and, in reply, 
I offer it as my opinion that the Unitarianism growing up among 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 247 

US the few yeai's past has so much philosophy as to endanger the 
Christian character of our denomination, and to make us mere 
rationalists of the German school, which I dread more than any- 
thing in the way of religious progress. The church at may 

be of use in spreading Christianity ; hut it may also be a reproval 
to it. I do not feel sufficient confidence in it to give money to 
keep life in it until I see evidence of some of the conservative 
influences that my own beloved and honored pastor is calling 
back among us. Your well-wisher and friend, 

"A. L. 

" P. S. — I fully agree in the opinion that is an import- 
ant point for the dissemination of truth ; and, before giving aid, I 
must know the man before I help support the minister, having 
small confidence in the teachings of many who enjoy considerable 
reputation as teachers of righteousness. I may have expressed 
doubts and fears that may not seem well founded; but I feel 
them." 

The following entry in his diary will give some idea 
of Mr. Lawrence's exactness in his daily business : 

" Saturday, July 24, 1847. — Enclosed in a note to the Rev. 
, of , a fifty-dollar bank-note, of the Atlantic 



Bank, No. 93, dated Jan. 1, 1846, payable to George William 
Dodd ; letter A at each end of the bill, and A. P. P, in blue ink, 
in my writing, at the top. Sent the letter to the post-office by 
coachman, and paid the postage; he keej^ing a memorandum of 
his having delivered it, and paid for it. A. L." 

" Sept. 14. — Professor , of the Baptist College in , 

has called, to whom I shall give a parcel of books for the use of 



248 DIARY AND CORIIESPONDEXCE. 

the college, and also a good -word, which I hope will make him 
remember in whose service he is engaged." 

"Sept. 15. — Delivered him about two hmidred and fifty 
volumes, various ; all of value to him and his college, he said. 
He is a young man (under thirty years) and a minister." 

" September 16, 1847, Sabbath-day* — ' most blessed Lord 
and Saviour ; thou who didst, by thy precious death and burial, 
take away the sting of death and the darkness of the grave ! grant 
unto me the precious fruit of this holy triumph of thine, and be 
my guide both in life and in death. In thy name will I lay me 
down in peace and rest ; for thou, Lord, makest me to dwell in 
safety ! Enlighten, Lord, the eyes of my understanding, that 
I may not sleep the sleep of death ! Into thy hands I commend 
my spirit ; for thou hast redeemed me, thou covenant-keeping 
God ! Bless and preserve me, therefore, botli now and forever ! 
Amen ! ' 

" These are suitable thoughts and aspirations, such as every 
Christian may profitably indulge on retiring each night. His 
bed should remind him of his grave ; and, as the day past brings 
him so much nearer to it, the appearance, when summoned hence, 
should be the point most distinctly before him. If he pass on 
with the ' Well done,' no time can be amiss when called up. 
God ! grant me to be ever ready ; and, by thy blessing and thy 
mercy, grant me to be allowed to join company with those loved 
and precious ones whom I feel entirely assured are at thy right 
hand, then to be no more separated ! Ajios Lawrence." 

The following note and memorandum by Mr. Law- 
rence will show how he dealt with an old debtor : 

* The opposito page is a fao-simile of the original manuscript found in Mr. Law- 
rence's pocket-ljook after his death. It may serve as a fair specimen of his chirog- 
raphy during his latter years. 



i'ac-Similc of iUv. jCuun-cucc's fjanb-rorUing i« 1847. 



•irl 



7 



" *TAAri{?4Tfe«^ 6-lL7M)Lj ItvSL eye/ cl J'lUfvjLl-w^^fl^^Tj^ 
"' feol^ U Wiut^ , ^ CcywYtii r\dW^^ U/3P IM^ Un^ 

"ffa>Tx|t/vJL, ij^-aorv g^^^c<x^._ -. Arm^y^ L 
, ;-p- j_^ T "^' 'y '^^^^ Jo nxxxjcknamy 



DIART AND CORRESPONDENCE. 251 

(to MR. C.) 

"My dear Sir : If you have any mode by which I can have 
the pleasure of receiving your note and interest, amounting to 
twenty-three huntbed dollars, to be vested by me for the benefit 
of your wife, I shall be pleased to do it, having long since deter- 
mined to appropriate this money, whenever received, in this way. 
" Youi-s, truly, A. L. 

" For himself and brother A." 

" Mem. — Mr. was an invalid, and confined to his house 

at that period, and sent for me to call and see him. I did so, and 
he seemed much affected at my ofier ; but told me he was in better 
circumstances than I had supposed him, and declined the proffered 
aid. The information thus given me in this last inter^w was 
most welcome : from that time, I never mentioned his debt. After 
his decease, it was paid by his sons ; and the family has been 
prosperous since. I spent the money for othei's in need, and am 
rejoiced that all his are so comfortable." 

]\Iany of our readers who can look back a few year.s 
will recall to memory the manly form, and fine, open 
countenance, of William L. Green, who was so suddenly 
cut off at the very threshold of what promised to be an 
honorable and useful career. He had come to Boston 
from his native town of Groton ; and, after serving an 
apprenticeship, had entered upon a successful business. 
He had endeared himself to a lai'ge circle of friends, 
and possessed such qualities of mind and heart as had 
made him the stay and hope of his parents in their 
declining years. 



252 DIARY AND CORRESPONDEXCE. 

Upon hearing of the death of this nephew, ilr. Law- 
rence addressed to his parents the following letter of 
sympathy : 

" Boston, October 22, 18-17. 
" Dear Brother and Sister : God speaks to us tbrougli 
the rustling of the leaves no less distinctly than in the voice of 
the whirlwind and the storm ; and it is now our business and our 
privilege to look at him and to him for the lesson of yesterday. 
Dear W., as he parted from me the Sabbath noon before the last, 
looked the emlwdiment of health, long life, and happiness. Now, 
that noble figure, face, expression, and loved spirit, which lightened 
his path, is no longer among us, to be in danger of injury from 
our yielding him that which belongs to God only. Were we not 
liable, dear brother and sister, to interrupt those communings 
which God calls us to with himself? Ho is our merciful Father, 
and does for us what he sees is best : and, if we i-eceive his teach- 
ings, however dark they may appear to us at present, all will be 
made clear at the riglit time. Your precious treasure is secured, 
I trust, and will prove an increased attraction to you to follow ; 
and it seems to me that our children are uniting in their joyful 
meeting in heaven. May we see in this event, more clearly than 
ever, where we are to look for direction, instruction, and support ! 
May we be ready when called ! So prays your affectionate and 
afflicted brother, A. L." 

To a friend he writes, Dec. 27 : 

" In our domestic relations, we are all as we could desire, save 
the individual case of my brother "William, who is barely remain- 
ing this side Jordan, and in a happy state, I trust, to pass over. 



DIARY AND COUnESPONDEXCE. 253 

For a number of days, we have supposed cacli niiirlit be the last; 
but he may continue for some days, or possibly weeks. Death 
strikes riglit and left, and takes from our midst the long-honored 
and beloved, in their maturity. Dr. Codman and Judge Hubbard 
are both to be buried to-day ; two men whose places will not 
soon be filled, I fear. Only last Tuesday, in my ride with good 
Dr. Sharp, we agreed to call and pay our respects to Dr. C. on 
Thursday ; l)ut, on that morning, learned that he was dead. On 
Thursday, Judge Hubbard rode out, and transacted legal business 
as a magistrate ; in the evening went to bed as usual ; in the 
night-time was turned over in bed, as he requested to be, and 
ceased to breathe. How could a good man pass over Jordan 
ri.rivo triumphantly and gloriously? " 

Tlie reader will not fail to note the coincidence, 
that, almost exactly five year.s later, Mr. Lawrence was 
summoned to " pass over " in the same manner, which, 
from the expression used, seems to have been to him so 
desirable ; though his own departure was still more 
sudden and strikinsc. 

(to a PnYSICIAN.) 

" Sabbath evening, seven o'clock. 

" Dear AV. : I have been readinsc to the last hour, 

beginning at the second chapter of Matthew, and so on in course. 
Please look at the fourth chapter, and the latter part of the 
twenty-third verse, and I think you will need no apology for doing 
what you do, with such instruction. Christ's example, no less 
than his precepts, is designed to be practically useful to the whole 
family of man ; and I feel humbled and grieved that I have not 



254 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

followed him better, and preached better by all the motives he has 
thus spread out. I say, then, to you and yours, God bless you 
in your good work, and make you a worthy follower of the 
Beloved! A. L." 



CHAPTEE XXYIII. 

REFLECTIONS. —VIEWS ON HOLDING OFFICE. — LETTERS. — CAPT.VIN 
A. SLIDELL McKENZIE. — DEATH OF BROTHER, AND OF HON. 
J. MASON. 

" Jan. 1, 1848. — In reviewing the scenes and the business of 
the past year, I have continued evidence of that mercy which a 
Father bestows on his children, and a louder call to yield moi'e 
fully than I ever yet have done to the teachings he designs. 
Many things that seem dark, of which the reasons are not under- 
stood, will be made clear at the right time. It is manifest that 
my stewardship is not so far well done as to permit me to fold my 
arms and feel easy. No : my life is spared for more work. Jlay 
its every day be marked by some token that shall meet Thine 
approval, when the final call shall come ! " 

(to president HOPKINS.) 

" Boston, March 9. 
" This religious awakening among your college students is 
among the blessings that our Father vouchsafes to his servants who 
labor faithfully in their work ; and I can see his hand as plainly in 
it as though it were thrust before my face as I write this sentence. 
Let us, then, bless his holy name, and thank him, as disciples and 
followers of Christ the Beloved ; and urge upon these young men 
to come forward, as doves to their windows. If my life and my 
trusteeship have been in any manner instrumental in this good 

255 



256 DIAHY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

work in your college, it will be matter of grateful thanksgiving 
while I live. ]\Irs. L. and myself both felt our hearts drawn out 
to you as we read your letter ; and we commend you, and the 
good work of guiding these interesting young Christians in the 
ways and the works that load to that blessed home to which our 
loved ones have been called, and to which we hope to be welcomed. 
To his grace and guidance we commend all things touching this 
onward and upward movement. I have been under the smarting- 
rod a few days within the past fortnight. Severe pain took all my 
courage and light-heartcdness out of me, and made me a sorry 
companion ; and my fiiends, seeing me in my every-day dress, 
would hardly know me in this sombre garb. Again, dear friend, 
I bid you God-.spccd in the good work ; and, at last, may you 
receive the ' Well done ' promised to the f lithful ! " 

In the presidential campaign of 1848, the Hon. 
Abbott Lawrence was made a prominent candidate of 
the Whig party for the Vice-Presidency ; and, in the 
convention which assembled at Philadelphia in June, 
was voted for, and received but one vote short of that 
which would have secured the nomination. Mr. Fill- 
more, it will be recollected, was the successful candi- 
date. During the canvass, a gentleman, editing a 
newspaper which strongly advocated the nomination of 
Taylor and Lawrence, addressed a very courteous letter 
to Mr. Amos Lawrence, asking for aid in supporting 
this movement, which he supposed he would of course 
be deeply interested in. The reply is given here, as an 
illustration of his views in regard to holding high 
political office : 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 257 

" Dear Sir : In reply to yours, this moment banded mo, 
I state that my income is so reduced, thus for, this year, that 
I am compelled to use prudence in the expenditure of money, 
and must therefore decline making the loan. If my vote 
would make my brother Vice-President, I would not give it, as 
I tliink it lowering his good name to accept oiEce of any sort, by 
employing such means as are now needful to get votes. I hope 
' Old Zack ' will be President. 

" Respectfully yours, A. L." 

To Pi-esideut Hopkin.s he writes, April 15 : 

"What should we do, if the Bible* were not the foundation 
of our system of self-government? and what will become of us, 
when we wilfully and wickedly cast it behind us ? We have all 
more than common reason to pray, in the depths of our sins, God 
be merciful to us sinners. The efforts made to lessen respect for 
it, and confidence in it, will bring to its rescue multitudes who 
otherwise would not have learned how much they owe it. The 
'Age of Reason,' fifty years ago, told, on the whole, in advancing 
truth, by bringing to its support the best minds of Christendom. 
I hope it may be so now. This is a theme for your head and heart 
and pen. No man in New England can make a deeper mark. 
What say ye ? The Bible is our great charter, and does more 
than all others, written or unwritten." 

" W. C. writes from N., asking me to loan him three thousand 

* In looking over the list of Lifo Directors of the American Bible 
Society, made such by the payment of one hundred and fifty dollars each, 
there are found at least ten who are known to have been constituted by 
Mr. Lawrence. 

33 



258 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

dollars to buy a farm, and to improve his health and mind ; 
stating that he is a cripple, but wants to do something for the 
world." 

" That man may last, but never lives, 
Who much receives, but nothing gives. 
Whom none can love, whom none can thank, 
Creation's blot, creation's blank." 

(to president nOl'KINS.) 

" Boston. June 12, 1848. 
"My dear Friend: Only think what changes a few weeks 
have produced in Europe, and the probable effects upon this 
country. It seems now certain that vast numbers will emigrate 
here, rich and poor, from the continent and from England. The 
question for us is. How shall we treat them ? It is certain that 
foreigners will come here. We have land enough for them, but 
have not the needful discipline to make them safe associates in 
maintaining our system of government. Virtue and intelligence 
are our platform ; but the base passions of our country have been 
ministered to so abundantly by unscrupulous politicians, that our 
moral sense has been blunted ; and these poor, ignorant foreigners 
are brought into use for selfish purposes, and the prospects for the 
future are appalling. Yet a ray of light has just broken in upon 
us by the nomination of General Taylor for President : and my 
belief is, he is the best man for the place who can be named, 
with any prospect of success. He is not a politician, but a plain, 
straight-forward, honest man, anxious to do his duty in all his 
relations. As to my lirother's nomination for Vice-President, I 
am thankful they did not make it in convention : he is in a higher 
position before the country than he would be if chosen Vice- 
President. His course has been elevated and mamauimous in this 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 259 

matter ; for he might, by his personal influence and efforts, have 
received the nomination. 

" Additional. — It is now almost two, p. m., and I have but 
just returned from Mount Auburn. The visit has been deeply 
interesting, on many accounts, and has almost unfitted me to 
finish this letter. However, there is nothing in the visit but what 
ought to make me thankful that my treasures, though removed, 
are secured ; and, if my poor efforts can bring me again into their 
society througli the blessed Saviour, I ought not allow this gush 
of feeling to unman me." 

A few clays later, he writes to the same friend : 

"I have not as yet heard of the e.xamination of yesterday at 
the Lawrence Academy, which son A. A. attended, but hope for 
a good report. In trutli, I feel as if that school and your college 
are to go hand in hand in making whole men for generations to 
come. There is a pleasant vision which opens to me when I look 
forward to the characters that the academy and the college are to 
send forth for the next hundred years. I bless God for my old 
home, and the gi'cat elm in front, which has a teaching and a 
significance that I shall endeavor to make use of in training my 
grandchildren and dear ones of my fiimily connection. How 
important, then, that our places of education be sustained, as 
supplying the pure and living streams that shall irrigate every 
hill and valley of this vast empire, and train men to know and do 
their duty ! I will not quarrel with a man's Presbyterian, Epis- 
copal, or Baptist creed, so be he will act the part of a good soldier 
of Christ ; for I verily believe great multitudes, of all creeds, 
desire to serve him faithfully." 

'^ At/ff. 2'^. — T. G. sent me a paper this morning, having 



260 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

many names on it, with a polite note. The paper I returned 
without reading ; telling him I did not read such, or hear stories, 
and must be excused. He took the answer in high dudgeon, and 
sent another note, saying he had mistaken me, and desired that 
his first note should be returned. I wrote upon it that I lived 
by the day and hour, an invalid, and, for two years, had adopted 
this course, and had treated bishops, clergymen, and laymen, with 
the fewest words ; that I intended no disrespect, and begged his 
pardon if I had done anything ■wrong. I also told him this 
course was urged upon me by my medical adviser ; but, with all 
my care, there is now an average of six applications a day 
through the year." 

Mr. Lawrence had, many years previous to this 
date, formed an acquaintance with Captain Slidell 
McKenzie, of the United States Navy, which had 
been continued, and was a source of mutual pleasure. 
Among other relics in the possession of the writer, is a 
cane of palm-wood, presented by Capt. McKenzie, on 
his return from Mexico as commander of the United 
States Steamship " Mississippi," to Mr. Lawrence, 
who had caused to be engraven upon it, on a silver 
plate, the following inscription : 

ALEXANDER SLIDELL McKENZIE TO AJIOS LAWRENCE. 

1845. 

PALM-WOOD FROM THE BANKS OP THE TOBASCO KIVER. 

FROM THE UNITED STATES NAVAL COMMANDEU WHO WAS NOT AFRAID TO DO HIS DUTY WHEN 
LIFE WAS BEQDTRED AT TOE YARD-ABM. 

The latter part of the inscription is in allusion to 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 261 

the course -which Capfc. McKenzie felt obliged to adopt 
in the mutiny on board the United States Brig ' ' Som- 
ers," in 184-. 

On Sept. 15, he thus notices the death of that officer 
in his diary : 

'• This morning's newspapers give the intelligence that the 
excellent and accomplished Capt. McKenzie died at Sing Sing, 
N. Y., two days ago. He fell from las horse by an affection 
of the heart, and died almost instantly. Thus has departed a 
man whom I esteemed as among the best and purest I am 
acquainted with, and whose character should be a treasure for his 
family and the nation. I think him a model officer and a good 
Ckristian." 



"Oct. 11.— 

CANADIAN BOAT-SONG. 

' Faintly as tolls the evening chime, 
Oar voices keep tune, and our oars keep time ; 
Soon as the woods on shore look dim, 
We '11 sing at St. Ann's our parting hymn. 
Row, brothers, row : the stream runs fast, 
The rapids are near, and daylight 's past.' 

I first heard this song sung and played on the piano by , 

afterwards Mrs. , at her house in ■ street, in 1809. 

The song rang in my ears sweetly for weeks, as I was taken 
down with fever the ne.xt morning. I never think of it but with 
delight." 

" Oct. 15. — My brother William died on Saturday, Oct. 14, 
at three, P. M., in the si.\ty-sixth year of his age; and my brother 
Mason died only five hours afterwards, in his eighty-first year, — 



262 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

within tlirce doors of each other. Both were very dear to me in 
life, and both are very dear to me in death ; and, in God's good 
time, I trust tliat I shall meet them again, not subject to the ills 
and changes of my present abode." 

In a letter of the same date to a friend, he says : 

" My letter of last Tuesday will have prepared you for the 
sad intelligence in this. Brother William continued without 
much suffering or consciousness till two o'clock yesterday, and 
then ceased breathing, without a groan. Yesterday morning, the 
hand of death was manifestly upon Brother Mason, who was 
conscious to objects around, and requested C. to pray with him ; 
and, when asked if he understood what was said, answered, 
' Yes,' and expressed liy words and signs his wants and feelings. 
He continued in a quiet, humble, and hopeful frame, we judge, 
until just eight o'clock, when, with a single gasp and a slight 
noise, his mighty spirit passed out of its immense citadel of clay, 
to join the throng of the loved ones gone before. Brother W. 
was in his si.xty-si.xth year. Brother M. in his eighty-first ; and 
both were such men as we need, true as steel in all good works 
and words. Mr. M. was never sick a day to disaljle him from 
attending to his professional and public duties in fifty years, and, 
until within a short time, never confined a day to his house by 
illness. On the last Sunday evening, I passed a most refreshing 
half-hour with him. He appeared as well as he had done for 
a year ; inquired very partieulaidy into Brother W.'s state ; 
expressed the opinion that his own time was near at hand, and a 
hope th;it he might be taken without losing his mental and 
bodily powers. He remarked that protracted old age, after the 
loss of power to give and receive comfort, was not to be desired. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 263 

He has often expressed to me the hope that he should be taken 
just as he has been. Have we not reason to praise and bless 
God in taking, no less than in scaring, these honored and loved 



ones 



?" 



CIIAPTEE XXIX. 

SYSTEM IN ACCOUNTS. — LETTER FROM PROF. STUART. — LETTERS. 
— DIARY. — UR. HAMILTON. —FATHER MATTHEW. 

January 1, 1849. — The habit of keeping an account of my 
expenditures for objects other than for my fiimily, and for strictly 
legal calls, I have found exceedingly convenient and satisfactory ; 
as I have been sometimes encouraged, by looking back to some 
entry of aid to a needy institution or individual, to do twice as 
much for some other needy institution or individual. I can truly 
say, that I deem these outlays my best, and would not, if I could 
by a wish, have any of them back again. I adopted the practice, 
ten years ago, of spending my income. The more I give, the 
more I have ; and do most devoutly and heartily pray God that I 
may be fitithful in the use of the good things intrusted to me." 

'■'■January '1. — Yesterday, Peter C. Brooks died, aged eighty- 
two ; a man who has minded his own business thi'ough life, and 
from a poor boy became the richest man in the city. I honor 
him as an honest man." 

(from PKOF. STUART, OF ANDOTER.) 

" Andover, January 23, 1849. 

" My DEAR Sir: Soon after my daughter's return from Boston, 

I received a garment exceedingly appropriate to the severe cold 

to which I am daily exposed in my rides. Many, many hearty 

thanks for your kindness ! To me the article in question is of 

264 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 265 

peculiar value. The colil can hardly penetrate beneath such a 
garment. God has blessed you with wealth ; but he has given 
you a richer blessing still ; that is, a heart overflowing with kind- 
ness to your fellow-beings, and a willingness to do good to all as 
you have opportunity. I accept, with warm emotions of grati- 
tude and tliankfulness, the kindness you have done to me. I 
would not exchange your gift for a large lump of the California 
gold. Be assured you have my fervent prayer and wishes, that 
you may at last receive a thousand-fold for all the kindness that 
you have shown to your fellow-men. You and I are near our 
final account. May I not hope that this will also be entering on 
our final reward ? I do hope this ; I must hope it. Wliat else 
is there in life that can make us patiently and submissively and 
calmly endure its ills ? God Almighty bless and sustain and 
guide and comfort you until death ; and then may yo>i pass 
through the dark valley without a fear, cheerfully looking to 
what lies beyond it ! 

" I am, my dear sir, with smcerc gratitude, your friend and 
obedient servant, Moses Stuart." 

To President Hopkins he writes, Jan. 3 : 

" Your letters always bring liglit to our path, and joy to our 
hearts, in one way or another. The two last seemed to come at 
the very time to do both, in a way to impress our senses and feel- 
ings, as the clear heavens, and brilliant sky, and e.xJiilarating 
atmosphere, of this charming cold day, do mine, in contrast with a 
beautiful bouquet of flowers on my table as a love-token from 
some of my young sleigh-riding friends, and which makes mo feel 
a boy with these boys, and an old man with such wise ones as 

you. 



266 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" In the scenes of the past year, much that will mark its char- 
acter stands out in bold relief; and, if we of this country are true 
to our principles, the great brotherhood of man will be elevated ; 
for there have been overturns and overturns which will act until 
He whose right it is shall reign. If we live up to our political 
professions, our Protestant religion will elevate the millions who 
will be brought under our levelling process. ' Level up,' but not 
down, was Judge Story's maxim of democratic levelling, as he 
began his political career. In the business of levelling up, the 
Lawrence Academy, I trust, may do something. The late notices 
of it have been somewhat various by the newspaper editors to 
whom the preceptor sent catalogues." 



^^ February 25. — Attended Brattle-street Church this morn- 
ing, and heard a consolatory sermon ; and, at the closing prayer, 
the giving of thanks to our Father in heaven, through Jesus 
Christ, who lived to serve us, and died to save us." 



") 



On the 28th, he writes to hi.s brother Abbott, who 
had had tendered to him, by General Taylor, the office 
of Secretary of the Navy : 

" Dear Brother : I have heard since noon that you have the 
invitation of General Taylor to take a seat in his cabinet, and 
that you will proceed to AVashington forthwith to answer for 
yourself I am not less gratified by the offer than you can be ; 
but I should feel deep anguish, if I thought you could be induced 
to accept it, even for a brief period. Your name and fame as a 
private citizen is a better inheritance for your children than any 
distinction you may attain from ofiBcial station ; and the influence 
you can exercise for your country and friends, as you are, is 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 267 

higher and better than any you can exercise as an official of the 
government." 

On Maxell 3, he ■writes to his brother at Washington: 

" I awoke this morning very early, and, after a ■\vliile, fixed 
my mind in prayer to God, that your duty may bo clearly seen, 
and that you may perform it in the spirit of a true disciple." 

Anil again on March 5, after hearing that his brother 
had declined the proffered seat in the cabinet, he writes 
to hiui : 

" The morning papers confirm my convictions of what you 
■would do ; and I do most heartily rejoice, and say that I never 
felt a.s proud before." 

" April 11. — A subscription paper, witli an introductory let- 
ter from , was handed me, on which were seven or eight 

names for a hundred dollars each, to aid the family of , 

lately deceased. Not having any acquaintance with him or fam- 
ily, I did not subscribe. Applications come in from all quarters, 
for all oljjccts. Tlie reputation of giving freely is a very bad 
reputation, so far as my personal comfort is concerned." 

April 21, he ■writes to a friend : 

" The matters of deepest interest in my last ■were , the 

religious movement, 's ill-health, and 's accident. All 

these matters are presenting a sunny show now. Our dead Uni- 
tarianism of ten or fifteen years ago is stirred up, and the deep 
feelings of sin, and salvation through the Beloved, are awakened. 



2G8 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

where there seemed to be nothing but indifference and coldness ; 
my hope and belief are that great good will follow. In the 
matter of the enjoyment of life, you judge me rightly ; few men 
have so many and rich blessings to be thankful for ; and, while 
I am spared with sufficient understanding to comprehend these, 
I pray that' I may have the honesty to use them in the way that 
the Master will approve. Of what use will it be to have my 
thoughts directed to the increase of my property, at the cost of 
my hopes of heaven ? There, a Lazarus is better off than a score 
of Dives. Pray without ceasing, that I may be faithful." 

The following extract of a letter is taken from a 
wox-k entitled " A Eoniance of the Sea- Serpent, or the 
Ichthyosaurus," and will show Mr. Lawrence's views 
respecting the much contested subject of which it 
treats : 

" Boston-, April 26, 1849. 

"I have never had any doubt of the existence of the Sea- 
Sei-pent since the morning he was seen off Nahant by Martial 
Prince, through his famous mast-head spy-glass. For, within the 
next two hours, I conversed with Mr. Samuel Cabot, and Mr. 
Daniel P. Pai'ker, I think, and one or more persons beside, who 
had spent a part of that morning in witnessing his movements. 
In addition. Colonel Harris, the commander at Fort Independence, 
told me that the creature had been seen by a number of his 
soldiers while standing sentry in the early dawn, some time 
before this show at Nahant ; and Colonel Harris believed it as 
firmly as though the creature were drawn up before us in State- 
street, where we then were. 

" I again say, I have never, from that day to this, had a doubt 
of the Sea-Serpenfs existence. The revival of the stories will 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 269 

bring out many facts that will ]Aace the matter before our people 
in such a light as will make them as much ashamed to doubt, as 
they formerly were to believe in its existence. 

"Yours truly, Amos Lawrence." 

To a friend lie writes, July 18 : 

" Brother A. has received the place of Minister to the Court 
of St. James; the most flattering testimony of his worth and 
character that is within the gift of the present administration, and 
the only office that I would not advise against his accepting." 

About this time, Mr. Lawrence read a small work, 
entitled "Life in Earnest," by the Rev. James Ham- 
ilton, D.D., Minister of the Scotch Church, Regent's 
Square, London. The sentiments of this little volume 
were so much akin to his own, and were withal so 
forcibly exemplified, that he commenced a correspond- 
ence with the author, which became a most interesting 
one, and continued until the close of his life. 

" Boston-, July 18, 1849. 
"To Ret. J. n.iMii.TON-, D.I). 

"Sir: The few lines on the other side of this sheet are 

addressed to me by our excellent governor, whose good word may 

be grateful to you, coming as it does from a Christian brother 

across the Atlantic. If it should ever happen to you to visit this 

country, I need not say how great would be my pleasure to see 

you. I am a minute-man, living by the day and by the ounce ; 

but am compensated for all privations, by reading such tracts as 

' Life in Earnest,' in such a way that few are allowed. I have 

cleared out the Sunday-school depository three times in the last 



270 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

four weeks, and have scattered the work broadcast, and intend to 
continue to do so if my health allows. Among those to whom I 
have given one is my younger brother, who is soon to be with you 
in England, as Minister to your Court. I recommend him to 
your prayers and your confidence. 

" With great respect for your character, I am yours, 

" Amos Lawrence." 

"July 23. — We are to have Father Matthew here to-morrow : 
he is a lion, but I probably shall only see him at a distance. 
The influence he is said to have upon his Irish people may result 
in making many of them industrious citizens, who would, without 
him, be criminals, and a pest to honest people. The evil of such 
masses being thrown upon us we must bear, and study how to 
relieve ourselves in any practicable way. I see none but to edu- 
cate the children, and circulate the Bible and good books among 
them, which shall encourage them to do the best they can for 
themselves. 

" The Christian banner may have many local influences and 
teachings ; but its broad folds, I trust, will cover many true fol- 
lowers, however exact its worldly interpreters may be of what 
constitutes a true follower. I saw, in the Neiv York Observer 
(I think it was), a statement of a district in the South-west, 
where were forty-one Christian denominations, and no two of 
whose ministers could exchange pulpit labors. Do not these 
people need a Christian teacher?" 

" Anc/iist 3. — Father Matthew is doing a good work here; 
and the result of his power is in his benevolent and sincere 
expression, and charming head and face. He has called to sec 
me twice, and I intend to call and see him to-morrow. His ease 
and eloquence could not do for him what his heavenly expression 
does." 



CHAPTER XXX. 

CODICIL TO WILL. — ILLNESS. — GEN. WHITING. — LETTERS. — DI.\Ri:'. 

In August, 1849, Mr. Lawrence reviewed liis will, 
and added to it the following codicil : 

" Through the mercy of God, my life has been prolonged to 
this time, and my mental and bodily powers continued to me to 
an extent that has enabled me to see to the application of those 
trusts that have been confided to me : and, should my stewardship 
end now or next year, and the ' Well done ' of the Master be 
pronounced upon my labors, all things here will seem nothing, 
and less than nothing, in comparison. 

" In short, my life, cheerful and happy as it is made by the 
three blessings conferred upon man after his fall (wife, children, 
and friends), is in the keeping of a merciful Father, who, by 
thus continuing it, allows me a foretaste of that future home I 
hope for whenever he calls. 

" In reviewing my will, above written, executed on the 21st 
day of February, A. D. 1846, I see nothing to alter, and every- 
thing to confirm. And I do hereby declare it still my will, and 
this codicil is to be taken as a confirmation of it ; and I do 
earnestly hope all in interest will see clearly the meaning of 
every clause, and carry out my meaning without any quibbling, 
question, or controversy. I have licen my own executor, for 
many years, of the surplus property I have received, and intend 

271 



272 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

to be while mj powers of mind will allow it. Many near and 
dear friends to whom I looked for counsel and direction, at the 
time mj will was executed, have been taken hence, which makes 
me more desirous of giving a renewed expression at this time." 

In this connection was the foUowing note to his sons, 
found in his pocket-book after his decease : 

« 

" Dear W. and A. : In my will, I have made no liequests 
as tokens of remembrance, and have endeavored to do for all 
(whom I am interested in out of my own family connections) 
what is needful and proper and best : yet I wish some expres- 
sion of kindness to M. and F., if in the family when I am 
taken." * * * * 

Here follow donations to domestics who had been for 
many years in his family. 

About the 20th of September, Mr. Lawrence expe- 
rienced a severe attack of cholera morbus, which was 
tlien a sort of epidemic in the community. Of this 
attack, he writes to President Hopkins as follows : 

" I hardly know how to address you, since I find myself once 
more spared to lay open my heart to you ; for I do indeed feel all 
the force of the words, "What shall I render unto God for all his 
unspeakable goodness ? I have been upon the brink of .Jordan, 
and, with my outstretched hand, seized hold of our merciful 
Father's hand, that was held out towards me, and was supported 
by his grasp as plainly as I could have been by your own hand. 
I was waiting, and praying to him to conduct me to the other 
side, and permit me to join the company of loved ones passed 



DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 273 

on, and felt almost sure I should never see the sunlight of this 
world again, when, to ray amazement, I found my pains subsiding, 
and that I had not finished the work he had assigned. When you 
were here, I gave you some little outline of my plan of work for 

. On the 18th of September, I completed that work, and 

felt stronger on that day than on any day for a month. Under 
the excitement of the scene and a sudden change of weather, I 
took cold, and had a terrible attack of cholera, which, by the 
immediate administration of remedies, was in a degree quieted. 
Thus my poor old worn-out machine was still kept from parting, 
as the sole of the shoe is sometimes kept on by freezing snow and 
water upon it." 

In the beginning of tliis volume, mention is made 
of the first clerk whom Mr. Lawrence employed after 
entering business in the year 1807. To that gentle- 
man, now Brigadier-General Whiting, was addressed 
the following letter, which was the recommencement of 
a correspondence which had ceased for many years : 

" Boston, November, 1849. 
" My dear General : I have been deeply interested in over- 
looking your volume of revolutionary orders of Washington, 
selected from your father's manuscripts, as it brought back scenes 
and memories of forty years and more ago, when I used to visit 
at your house in Lancaster, and to read those papers with a relish 
that might well be coveted by the youth of the present day. I 
thank you for this token of auld lang syne, and shall feel the 
more thankful if you will come and see me. I would certainly go 
to you, if I had the strength, and could do it safely : but shall 
never go so far from home, being at any moment liable to be 
35 



274 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

called off. My earnest desire is to be ' in line,' and to be able to 
answer, promptly, ' here.' I hope to bear from you and your wife 
and wee things : all have a hold upon me, and you will give them 
iin old man's love. I have taken the opportunity to send you 
some little reminiscences of old times. Butler's ' History of 
Groton ' (which connects Lancaster in eai'ly days) is a model for 
its exact truthfulness : he was the preceptor of the academy until 
long after you entered the army. Then I have sent a catalogue 
of the school, from its beginning for fifty years or more ; ' His- 
tory of Lowell as it Was, and Lowell as it Is,' well written and 
true ; ' Boston Notions,' put together by old Mr. Dearborn, the 
printer, whom you knew ; and some other little matters, which 
will serve to freshen old things, as your ' Eevolutionary Orders 
of Washington ' have done with mc. I have just looked into my 
first sales-book, and there see the entries made by you more than 
forty years ago. Ever since, you have been going up, from the 
cornet of dragoons to the present station. 

"Farewell. Your old friend, Amos Lawrence. 
" Gen. Henry Wuiting, Fort Hamilton, N. Y." 

(to ROBERT BARNWELL RHETT, ESQ., OF SOUTH CAROLINA.) 

" Boston, Dec. 12, 1849. 
"My dear Sir: Your letter of November 30 reached me in 
due course, and gave me unfeigned pleasure in seeing my hopes 
confirmed, that the practical common sense of South Carolina was 
returning, and that the use of their head and hands was getting to 
be felt among the citizens, as necessary to their salvation as com- 
mon brethren in the great family of States. Without the use of 
those trusts placed in their hands by our common Father, the 
State will not be worth the parchment on which to draw the deeds 
fifty years hence ; and I most earnestly pray God to guide, guard, 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 275 

and save the State from their childishuess in their fears that our 
northern agitators can harm them. I spent the winter of 1819 in 
Washington, and heard the whole of the debate upon admitting 
Alabama and Missouri into the Union. Alabama was admitted, 
Missouri rejected ; and I made up my mind then that I would 
never interfere until requested by my brethren of the Slave- 
holding States ; which resolution I have carried out from that 
day to this ; and I still hold to it. But I would not have admit- 
ted Alabama then or Missouri on the terms they were admitted. 
We of the North have windy, frothy politicians, who hope to 
make capital out of their ultraism ; but, in the aggregate, they 
soon find their level. Now, of the point to which I desire to 
come, I do earnestly desire your State to carry out your proph- 
ecy, that, in ten years, you will spin all your own crop of 
cotton ; for we of Massachusetts will gladly surrender to you the 
manufacture of coarse fabrics, and turn our industry to making 
fine articles. In short, we could now, if you are ready, give up 
to you the coarse fiibrics, and turn one half of our machinery into 
spinning and weaving cotton hose ; and nothing will help us all 
so much as specific duties. The whole kingdom of Saxony is 
employed at this moment in making cotton hose for the United 
States from yarns purchased in England, and made of your cot- 
ton. How much better would it be for you and for us to save 
these treble profits and transport, by making up the cotton at 
home ! Think of these matters, and look at them without the 
prejudice that prevails so extensively in your State. A few 

years ago, I asked our kinsman, Gen. , of your State, how 

the forty-bale theory was esteemed at that time. His answer 
was, ' We all thought it true when it was started, and it had its 
efiect : but nobody is of that mind now.' Still, I believe, when 
an error gets strong hold of the popular mind, it is much more 



276 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

difficult to eradicate it than it is to supply the truth in its place. 
If I know myself, I would not mete to you any different measure 
from what I would ask of you ; and I must say to you, that your 
State and people have placed themselves in a false position, which 
will be as apparent to tliem in a few years as the sun is at noon- 
day. My own fimily and friends are in usual health ; and no 
man this side heaven enjoys earth better than I do. I do pray 
you to come and see us. I hope to see your son at Cambridge 
this week. Most respectfully yours, 

" Amos Lawrence." 

" Boston', December 11, 1849. 
" To Gen. IIexry Whiting, U. S. A., Fort Hamilton, N. Y. 

" My early Friend : Forty years and more ago, we used to 
talk over together the dismemberment of Poland and the scenes 
that followed, and to pour out together our feelings for those 
martyrs of liberty. At the present moment, my feelings are 
deeply moved by taking by the hand Colonel P. and Major F., 
just landed here, and driven from their country, martyrs to the 
same cause. I need only say to you that they are strangers 
among us, and any attentions from you will be grateful to them, 
and duly felt by your old friend, A. L." 



'■'■December 24, 1849. — I have been daily employed, of late, 
in accompanying visitors to our public institutions ; among these, 
Mr. Charles Carroll, of Maryland, to the Mather School and the 
Perkins Asylum for the BUnd. The effect of kindness upon the 
character of children is more strikingly illustrated m the Mather 
School than in any other I know of Three fifths of the pupils 
are children of foreigners, — English, Irish, Scotch, German, 
Swiss, and the like, — mostly very poor. Two fifths are Amer- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 277 

ican; and these foreign cbiliben, after a few months, are ambitious 
to loolc as well and do as well as the best. The little Irish creat- 
ures are as anxious to have their faces clean, their hair smooth, 
their clothes mended, and to learn to read, write, and explain 
their lessons, as the upper children. These upper children, 
to the number of about one hundred, belong to the Lawrence 
Association." 

'■'■December 2b, Christmas afternoon. — The following beau- 
tiful little note, accomi^anied by a silver cup, almost unmanned 
me. Forty-three girls signed the note ; two others engaged in it 
are sick ; and one died, and was buried at Mount Auburn by her 
particular request, — making forty-six of these children, who, of 
their own motion, got up this token. Their note is dated to-day, 
and runs thus : 

" ' Respected Sir : The misses of the Lawrence Association, 
anxious to testify their gratitude for the kind interest which you 
have ever manifested towards them, would most respectfully 
request your acceptance of this small token of their gratitude.' " 
(Signed by forty-three girls.) 

" 26. — We had great times with the children last evening at 
Sister M.'s. It really seemed to mo that the entertainment gave 
me as much pleasure as any child among them ; beside which, I 
went to the house of my old friend Dr. Bowditch (where I used 
to visit twenty-five years ago on like occasions), for a few minutes, 
and there found seventeen of his grandchildren enjoying the fruits 
of the Christmas-tree in the best manner possible." 



CHAPTER XXXI. 

DIARY. — REFLECTIONS. — SICKNESS. — LETTER FROM REV. DR. 
SHARP. — CORRESPONDENCE. 

On the first of January, 1850, Mr. Lawrence, as 
usual, reviews, in his property-book, the state of his 
affaii's during the preceding year, with an estimate of 
his expenditures. The entry for the present year is as 
follows : 

" The amount of my expenditures for all objects (taxes 
included) is about one hundi-ed and twenty thousand dollars. I 
consider the money well spent, and pray God constantly that I 
may be watchful in the use of the blessings he bestows, so that 
at last he may admit me among the faithful that surround his 
throne." 

The above entry will give some idea of the fidelity 
with which his trusts had been fulfilled, so far as 
i-egarded his worldly possessions. Each year, as it 
rolled by, as well as each successive attack of illness, 
seemed only to stimulate him in his efforts to accom- 
plish what he could while the day lasted. No anxious 
fears disturbed him as he looked forward to the near 
approach of "that night when no man can work." 

278 



DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 279 

That uight to him was hut a prelude of rest from 
hodily weakness and suffering, and the forerunner of a 
brighter day, of which, even in this workl, he was 
sometimes permitted to obtain a glimpse. He says : 

" My own health ami strength seem renewed. That cholera 
attack has changed the whole man : and it is only now and then 
I am brought to a pause that quickens me in my ^vork when 
again started. A week since, I ventured on two ounces of solid 
food for my dinner, differing from what I have taken for many 
years. Nine hours after, in my sleep, I fainted, and was brought 
to life by dear N. standing over me, giving ammonia, rubliing, 
and the like. Fasting the day following brought me back to the 
usual vigor and enjoyments. Do you not see in this the sentence, 
' Do with thy might what thy hand findeth to do,' stereotyped in 
large letters before me. This it is that brings me to the work at 
this hour in the morning." 



''March 24. — Received a letter from Rev. Mr. Ilallock, 
Secretary of the American Tract Society, saying that the Society 
will publish Dr. Hamilton's lecture on the literary attractions of 
the Bible, which I had sent them a few weeks since ; and will 
sujiply me with two thousand copies, as I requested. 

" Received also, this morning, another tract of Dr. H. from 
sister K., in London, called the ■' Happy Home,' which finished 
that series to the working people. After reading this number, I 
feel a strong desire to see the preceding nine numbers." 

(to the rev. JAMES nAMILTOX, D.D.) 

" BosTox, March 24, 1850. 
" Rev. axi) dear Sir : I need not repeat to you how deeply 
interesting all your writings which I have seen have been to me ; 



280 DIARY AND COERESPONDENCE. 

but you may not feel indifferent to the fact that the lecture you 
delivered four months ago, on the literary attractions of the Bible 
(which I received from my sister, Mrs. Abbott Lawrence, a few 
weeks since), is now in process of republication by the American 
Tract Society, agreeably to my reciuest. I hope to assist in scat- 
tering it broadcast over our broad land ; and thus you will be 
speaking from your own desk, with the speed of light, to an 
audience from PassamaquodJy to Oregon. Will you do me the 
favor to give me a copy of ' Happy Home,' from which I may 
teach my childi-en and grandchildren. 

" Respectfully your friend, and brother in Christ, 

"Amos Lawrence." 

(to a countkt clergtuan (orthodox congreg.\tionai,).) 

" Boston, May 16, 1850. 
" Rev. and dear Sir : I make no apology in asking your 
acceptance of the above, as I am quite sui-e it cannot come amiss 
to a poor clergyman, situated as you are. I pray that you will 
feel, in using it, you cheer my labors, and make me more happy 
while I am al)le to enjoy life, in thus sending an occasional 
remembrancer to one for whom I have always felt the highest 
respect and esteem. Your friend, " Amos Lawrence." 

The above letter contained a draft for one hundred 
dollars, of vrhich Mr. Lawrence makes the following 
memorandum, dated on the ISth : 

" Mr. acknowledges the above letter in very grateful 

terms, being what his pressing w"ants require." 

In a letter to President Hopkins, dated June 22, 
Mr. Lawrence says : 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 281 

" If I cannot visit you bodily, as I had vainly hoped to do, I 
can con\'ince you that the life and hope of younger days are still 
in mc. Your i)arting word touched me to the quick, and I can- 
not repeat or read it without a sympathetic tear filling my own 
eye. I am not able to stand up ; but am cheered by the hope 
that, before many weeks, I may be able to stand alone. Our 
good firiend Governor Briggs called to see me this week, and 
was quite horrified to see me trundled about on a hospital chair ; 
however, after a good talk, he concluded that what was cut off 
from the lower works was added to the upper, and the account in 
my favor. It has always been so with me ; the dark places have 
been made clear at the right time ; so I am no object of pity." 

The lameness here mentioned was caused by a slight 
sprain of the ankle, but was followed by great prostra- 
tion of the bodily strength, and a feeble state of all the 
functions, resulting in that vitiated state of the blood 
called by physicians " purpura." Violent hemorrhages 
from the nose succeeded ; and these, with the intense 
heat of the weather, so reduced his strength, that the 
only hope of recovery seemed to be in removing him 
from the city to the bracing air of the sea-shore. 
Towards the end of July, he was accordingly removed 
upon a mattress to the house of his son, at Nahant ; 
and, from the moment he came within the influence of 
the fresh sea-breeze, he began to recover his spirits and 
his strength. A day or two after reaching Nahant, he 
received from his friend, the Rev. Dr. Sharp, the fol- 
lowing letter, which is so characteristic, and reminds 



282 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 



one so forcibly of the calm and staid mauuer of that 
venerable man, that it is given entire : 



" Boston, July 30, 1850. 
"My vkry dear Friend : It ^vas with deep regret I learned, 
on Friday last, that you were (|uite unwell, and at Nahant. 
It Tvas in my mind yesterday morning to visit you ; nothing 
prevented me but an apprehension that it might be deemed 
inexpedient to admit any one to your sick room, except your 
own family. But, although I have not seen you in person 
since your last sickness, yet I have been with you in spirit. I 
have felt exceedingly sad at the prolmbility of your earthly 
departure. Seldom as we have seen each other, your friendship 
has been precious to me ; and, to say nothing of your dear family, 
your continuance in life is of great importance to that large 
family of humanity, the poor, who have so often participated in 
your bounty. Indeed, as we cannot well spare you, I rather 
cherish the hope that, in his good providence, God will continue 
you to us a little longer. But, whatever may be the issue of 
your present illness, I trust that you, with all j'our friends, will 
be enabled to say, ' The will of the Lord be done.' If he ' lives 
the longest who answers life's great end,' your life, compared 
with most, has not been short. Not that any of us have done 
more than our duty. Nay, we have all come short, and may 
say, with all modesty and truthfulness, we are unprofitable ser- 
vants; although, in some respects, and to our fellow-beings, we 
may have been profitable. I trust, my dear friend, you are look- 
ing for the mercy of God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, unto 
eternal life. Death is not an eternal sleep ; no, it is the gate to 
life. It opens up a blessed immortality to all who, in this world, 
have feared God and wrought righteousness. This world is a 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 283 

probationary state ; if ttc have been faithful, in some humble 
degree, to our convictions of duty ; if we have regretted our 
follies and sins ; if we have sought to do the will of our heavenly 
Father, and sought forgiveness through the mediation of his Son, 
— God will receive us to his heavenly glory. I believe, in his 
own good time, he will receive you, my very dear friend ; 
although my prayer is, with submission, that he will restore you 
to comfortable health, and allow you to remain with us a little 
longer. May God be with you, and bless you, in life, in death, 
and forevermore ! With most respectful regard to Mrs. L., and 
symj)athy with you in your afflictions, in which my dear wife 
joins, I am truly yours, Dass^el Sharp." 

From Little Naliant, Mr. Lawrence writes to a 
friend, under date of Aug. IG : 

'■' I have just arisen from bed, and am full of the matter to tell 
you how much good your letter has done. I came here as the 
last remedy for a sinking man ; and, blessed be God, it promises 
me renewed life and enjoyment. What is it for, that I am thus 
saved in life, as by a miracle ? Surely it must be in mercy, to 
finish out my work begun (m your college and other places), yet 
unfinished. Pray, give us what time you can when you visit 
Andover. K I continue to improve as I have done for ten days, 
I hope to return home next week ; but may have some drawback 
that will alter the whole aspect of aSairs. This lieautiful Little 
Nidiant seems to have been purchased, built up, and provided, by 
the good influence of our merciful Father in heaven upon the 

heart of . that he might save me from death, when it was 

made certain I could not hold out many days longer Suixdy I 
am called on by angel voices to render praise to God." 



284 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

The five weeks' residence upon tlie sea-shore was 
greatly enjoyed by Mr. Lawrence. As the weather 
was generally fine, much of his time was passed in the 
open air, in watching the ever-varying sea-views, in 
reading, or in receiving the visits of his friends. Near 
the end of August, his health and strength had become 
so far restored as to warrant his return to the city, and, 
as his memoranda show, to increased efforts in the field 
of charity. 



CHAPTER XXXII. 

AMN BET. — AMOUNT OF DONATIONS TO WILLIAMS COLLEGE. 

In November, 1850, Amin Bey, Envoy from the 
Sultan of Turkey to the United States, visited Boston. 
Among other attentions, Mr. Lawrence accompanied 
him on a visit to the Female Orphan Asylum, then 
containing about one hundred inmates ; and the pleas- 
ant intercourse was continued by a visit of the minister 
at Mr. Lawrence's house. 

The following note accompanied a number of 
volumes relating to Boston and its vicinity : 

(to his excellenxv amin bey.) 

"My Brother: The manifest pleasure you felt in visiting 
our Female Orphan Asylum yesterday has left a sunbeam on my 
path, that will illumine my journey to our Father's house. 
When we meet there, may the joy of that reunion you hope 
for with the loved ones in your own country be yours and mine, 
and all the good of all the world be our companions for all time ! 
With the highest respect, believe me your friend, A. L." 

(to president nOPKINS.) 

"Boston, November 11, 1850. 
" My dear Friend : My brief letter of introduction by my 
young friend S., and your answer to it, which I mislaid or lost 

285 



286 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

soon after it came, has made me feel a wish to write every day 
since the first week after I received yours. S. made me out bet- 
ter than I was when he saw me. I could walk across the rooms, 
get down and up stairs without much aid, and bear my weight on 
each foot ; having strength in my ankle-bones that enabled me to 
enter the temple walking, not leaping, but praising God. If ever 
I am able to walk so far as around the Common, what gratitude 
to God should I feel to take your arm as my support ! I am fre- 
quently admonished by faint turns that I am merely a ' minute- 
man,' liable to be called for at any moment. Only a few days 
since, I had a charming call from Aniin Bey and suite, whom 
I received in my parlors below, where were some friends to 
meet him. All seemed interested, and Amin as much so as a 
Turk ever does. When he left us, I went with him to the door, 
saw him out and in his carriage, turned to open the inner entry- 
door, became faint just as M. was leaving the party, and leaned 
on her to get into the parlor. I was laid on the sofa, insensible for 
a short time, but, by labor, abstinence, and great care, for two or 
three days, have got upon my high horse again, and rode with N. 
to make calls upon the good people of Cambridge. After dinner, 
when I awoke, I tried to go about my work, but was called off 
again, and, from that time to this, have been up a little, and then 
down a little ; thus asking me, with angels' voices. Why are you 
left here ? The answer is plain : You have more work to do. 
Pray, my dear friend, for me to be faithful while my powers are 
left with me. The reports of and from your college make me 
feel that my labors in helping it to get on its legs have been 
repaid four-fold. I am its debtor, and will allow the money out 
of the next year's income to be used for a telescope, if you deem 
it best. I have made no further inquiry for the one in progress 
here, but will ask W. to look and see what progress is making. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 287 

When I leave off writing, I shall rirlo to the office in Court- 
square, and dejDosit my Whig vote for Governor Briggs and the 
others. We are so mLxed up here as hardly to know who are sup- 
porters of the regular ticket, and who not. This fugitive-slave 
business will keep our people excited till the law is blotted out. 
In some of our best circles the law is pronounced unconstitu- 
tional ; and my belief is that Franklin Dexter's argument on 
that point will settle the question by starting it, our great men to 
the contrary notwithstanding." 

In the above letter Mr. Lawrence speaks of the 
gratification which he had derived from the results of 
his efforts in behalf of Williams College ; and, as there 
may be no more fitting place to give an account of 
these efforts, the following record is here introduced, 
from the pen of President Hopkins. It is found in his 
sermon commemorative of the donor, delivered at the 
request of the students, on February 21, 1853. 

" In October, 1841, the building known as the East College 
was burned. Needy as the institution was before, this rendered 
necessary an application to the Legislature for funds ; and, when 
this failed, to the public at large. Owing to a panic in the money 
market, this application was but slightly responded to, except in 
this town. In Boston the sum raised was less than two thousand 
dollars ; and the largest sum given by any individual was one 
hundred dollars. This sum was given by Mr. Lawrence, who was 
applied to by a friend of the college ; and this, it is believed, was 
the only application ever made to him on our Ijchalf This 
directed his attention to the wants of the college ; but nothing 



288 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

more was beard from him till January, 1844. At that time, I 
was delivering a course of the Lowell Lectures, in Boston, when 
bis son, Mr. Amos A. Lawrence, called and informed me that his 
father had five thousand dollars which he wished to place -at 
the disposal of the college. As I was previously but slightly 
acquainted with Mr. Lawrence, and had had no conversation with 
him on the subject, this was to me an entire surprise ; and, 
embarrassed as the institution then was by its debt for the new 
buildings, the relief and encouragement which it brought to my 
own mind, and to the minds of others, friends of the college, can 
hardly be expressed. Still, this did not wholly remove the debt. 
On hearing this casually mentioned, he said, if he had known 
how we were situated, he thought he should have given us more ; 
and the following July, without another word on the subject, he 
sent me a check for five thousand dollars. This put the college 
out of debt, and added two or three thousand dollars to its avail- 
able funds. In January, 1846, he wrote, saying he wished to see 
me ; and, on meeting him, he said his object was to consult me 
about the cbsposition of ten thousand dollars, which he proposed 
to give the college. He wished to know how I thought it would 
do the most good. I replied, at once. By being placed at the 
disposal of the trustees, to be used at their discretion. He said, 
' Very well ; ' and that was all that passed on that point. So I 
thought ; and, knowing his simplicity of character, and singleness 
of purpose, I felt no embarrassment in making that reply. Here 
was a beautiful exemplification of the precept of the apostle, ' He 
that giveth, let him do it with simplicity.' Such a man had a 
right to have, for one of his mottoes, 'Deeds, not words.' This 
was just what was needed : liut it gave us some jjreadth and 
enlargement, and was a beginning in what it had long been felt 
must, sooner or later, be undertaken, — the securing of an avail- 



II 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 289 

able fund suitaljle as a basis for such an institution. His next 
large gift was the library. This came from his asking me, as I 
■was riding flith him the following winter, if we wanted anything. 
Nothing occurred to me at the time, and I replied in the negSr- 
tive ; but, the next day, I remembered that the trustees had voted 
to build a library, provided the treasurer should find it could be 
done for twenty-five hundred dollars. This I mentioned to him. 
He infjuired what I supposed it would cost. I replied, ' Five 
thousand dollars.' He said, at once, ' I will give it.' With his 
approbation, the plan of a building was subsecpiently adopted that 
would cost seven thousand dollars ; and ho paid that sum. A 
year or two subsetpxently, he in(|uire<l of me the price of tuition 
here, saying he should like to connect Groton Academy with Wil- 
liams College ; and he paid two thousand dollars to estaldish four 
scholarships for any one who might come from that institution. 
Ilis next gift was the telescope, which cost about fifteen hundred 
dollars. The history of this would involve some details which I 
have not now time to give. In 1851, accompanied by Mrs. Law- 
rence, he made a visit here. This was the first time either of 
them had seen the place. In walking over the grounds, he said 
they had great ca])al)ilities, but that we needed more land ; and 
authorized the purchase of an adjoining piece of four acres. This 
purchase was made for one thousand dollars ; and, if the college 
can have the means of laying it out, and adorning it suitaljly, it 
will, besides furnishing scope for exercise, be a fit addition of the 
charms of culture to great beauty of natural scenery. In addition 
to these gifts, he has, at different times, enriched the library with 
costly books, of the expense of which I know nothing. Almost 
everything we have in the form of art was given by him. In 
December, 1845, I received a letter from him, dated the 22d, or 

' Forefathers' Day.' which enclosed one hundreil dollars, to be 
37 



290 DIARY AXD CORRESPONDENCE. 

used for the aid of needy students in those emergencies whicli 
often arise. This was entirely at his own suggestion ; and nothing 
could have been more timely or appropriate in an institution like 
this, where so many young men are struggling to make their own 
way. Since that time, he has furnished me with at least one 
hundred dollars annually for that purpose ; and he regarded the 
expenditure with much interest. Thus, in difierent ways, Mr. 
Lawrence had given to the college between thirty and forty thou- 
sand dollars ; and he had expressed the purpose, if he should live, 
of aiding it still further. Understanding as he did the position 
and wants of this college, he sympathized fully with the trustees 
in their purpose to raise the sum of fifty thousand dollars, and. at 
the time of his death, was exerting a most warm-hearted and 
powerful influence for its accomplishment. In reference to this 
great eifort, we feel that a strong helper is taken away. The aid 
which Jlr. Lawrence thus gave to the college was great and indis- 
pensable ; and probably no memorial of him will be more eiidui-- 
ing than ivhat he has done here. By this, being dead, he yet 
speaks, and will continue to speak in all coming time. From him 
will flow down enjoyment and instruction to those who shall walk 
these grounds, and look at the heavens through this telescope, and 
read the books gathered in this library, and hear instruction from 
teachers sustained, wholly or in part, by his l)ounty. Probably 
he could not have spent this money more usefully ; and there is 
reason to believe that he could have spent it in no way to bring 
to himself more enjoyment. The prosperity of the college was a 
source of great gratification to him : and he said, more than once, 
that he had been many times repaid for wliat he had done here. 
That he should have thus done what he did unsolicited, and that 
he — and, I may add, his family — should have continued to find 
in it so much of satisfoction, is most grateful to my ovra feelings, 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 291 

and must be so to every friend of the college. In doing it, lie 
seemed to place himself in the relation, not so much of a patron 
of the college, as of a sympathizer and helper in a great and 
good work." 



CHAPTER XXXIII. 

LETTEKS. — DIARY. 

At the beginning of the year 1851, ]\lr. Lawrence 
writes to President Hopkins : 

" The closing of tlio old year was like our western horizon 
after sunset, bright and beautiful ; the opening of the new, radiant 
with life, light, and hope, and crowned with such a costume of 
love as few old fathers, grandfathers, and uncles, can muster ; in 
short, my old sleigh is the pet of the season, and rarely appears 
without being well filled, outside and inside. It is a teacher to 
the school-children, no less than to my grandchildren ; for they 
all understand that, if they are well-behaved, they can ride with 
me when I make the signal ; and I have a strong persuasion that 
this attention to them, with a present of a book and a kind word 
now and then, makes the little fellows think more of their conduct 
and behavior. At any rate, it does me good to hear them call 
out, ' How do you do, Mr. Lawrence ? ' as I am ch-iving along the 
streets and by-ways of the city." * * * 

To an aged clergyman in the country, who was hlind 
and in indigent circumstances, lie writes : 

" Jan. 14. 
" Your letter of last week reached me on Saturday, and was 
indeed a sunbeam, which quickened me to do what I had intended 

292 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 293 

for a ' happy new-year.' before receiving yours. I trust you will 
have received a parcel sent by railroad, on Monday, directed to 
you, and containing such things as I deemed to be useful in your 
family ; and I shall be more than paid, if they add one tint to the 
' purple light ' you speak of, that opens upon your furtlier hopes 
of visiting us the coming season. For many months I was unable 
to walk ; but my feet and ankle-bones have now received strength. 
I feel that the prayers of friends have been answered by my 
renewed power to do more work. How, then, can I enjoy life 
better than by distributing the good things intrusted to me among 
those who are comforted by receiving them ? So you need not 
feel, my friend, that you are any more obliged than I am. The 
enclosed Ijauk-bills may serve to fit up the materials for use ; at 
any rate, will not be out of place in your pocket. I trust to see 
you again in this world, which has to me so many interesting 
connecting links between the first and only time I have ever seen 
you (thirty-five or more years ago, in Dr. Huntington's pulpit, 
Old South Church) and the present." 

(from rev. j.^mes uamiltox, d.d.) 

" 42 GowER-sTREET, LoxDOx, Feb. 15, 1851. 
" My dear Sir : No letter which authorship has brought to 
me ever gave me such pleasure as I received from yours of July, 
1849, enclosing one which Governor Briggs had written to you. 
That strangers so distinguished should take such interest in my 
writings, and should express yourselves so kindly towards myself, 
overwhelmed me with a pleasing surprise, and with thankfulness 
to God who had given me such favor. I confess, too, it helped to 
make me love more the country which has always been to me the 
dearest ne.xt to my own. In conjunction with some much-prized 
friendships which I have formed among your ministers, it would 



294 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

almost tempt me to cross the Atlantic. But I am so bad a sailor 
that I fear I must postpone personal intercourse with those Amer- 
ican fi-icnils who ilo not come to England, until we reacli the land 
where there is no more sea. However feebly expressed, jilease 
accept my heartfelt thanks for all the cost and trouble you have 
incurred in circulating my publications. It is pleasant to me to 
think that your motive in distributing them, in the first instance, 
could not l)e friendsliip for the author : and to lioth of us it will 
be the most welcome result, if they promote the cause of practical 
Christianity. Owing to weakness in the throat and chest, I can- 
not preach so much as many of my neighbors, and therefore I 
feel the more an.xious that my tracts should do something for the 
honor of the Saviour and the welfare of mankind. You ^vere kind 
enough to repi'int my last lecture to young men. I could scarcely 
wish the same distinction bestowed on its successor, because it is a 
fragment. I have some thoughts of extending it into a short 
exposition of Ecclesiastes, which is a book well suited to the times, 
and but little understood. * * * 

" Yours, most truly, James Hamiltox." 

In reply to the above letter, Mr. Lawrence writes, 
April 8 : 

" I will not attempt to express to you in words my pleasure in 
receiving your letter of Fclj. 15, with its accompaniments. The 
lecture delivered to the young men on the 4th of February, 
although designated by you as a fragment, I sent to my friend, 
with a copy of your letter, asking him whether he would advise 
its publication, and whether he would scatter it with its prede- 
cessor ; and, if so, I would pay the expense. His answer you 
have here, and I have the pleasure of saying that the ' Frag- 
ment ' will be ready to circulate by thousands the present week ; 





.? 






,.ii?!T 




\ 



-.-^-. 



^^^^^^^£^ 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 295 

and, ^vhen joii shall liave added your further comments upon 
Solomon and his works, our American Tract Society will be ready 
to publish the whole by hundreds of thousands, I trust, thus 
enabling you to preach through our whole country. The Memoir 
of Lady Colquhon is a precious jewel, which I shall keep among 
my treasures to leave my descendants. I had previously pur- 
chased a number of copies of the American edition, and scattered 
them among my friends, so that there is great interest to see your 
copy sent me. The part of your letter which touched my heart 
most Avas that in which you speak of my brother Abbott, and say 
of him that ' no foreign minister is such a f ivorite with the 
British public' It brought him before me like a daguerreotype 
likeness, through every period of his life for fifty years. First, as 
the guiding spirit of the boys of our neighborhood, in breaking 
through the deep snow-drifts which often blocked up the roads in 
winter; then as my ajiprentice in the city; and, in a few years, 
as the young military champion, to watch night and day, under 
arms, on the point of Bunker Hill nearest the ocean, the move- 
ments of a British fleet lying within four or five miles of him, 
and threatening the storming of Boston; then, soon after, as 
embarking in the very first ship for England, after the close of 
the war, to purchase goods, which were received here in eighty- 
three days after he sailed. Since that time, our firm has never 
been changed, except by adding ' & Co.,' when other partners 
were admitted. He has been making his way to the people's 
respect and aifection from that time to this, and now fills the only 
public station I would not have protested against his accepting, 
feeling that place cannot impart rjracc. IMy prayers ascend con- 
tinually for him, that he may do his work under the full impres- 
sion that he must give an account to Him whose eye is constantly 
upon him, and whose ' Well done ' will be infinitely better than 



296 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

all tilings else. I believe lie is a^Yakenin^ an interest to learn 
more about tliis country ; and the people will be amazed to see 
what opportunities are here enjoyed for happiness for the great 
mass. What we most fear is that ignorance which will bring 
everything down to its own level, instead of that true knowledge, 
which shall level up the lowest places, now inundated with foreign 
emigrants. Our duty is plain ; and, if we do not educate and 
elevate this class of our people, they will change our system of 
government within fifty years. Virtue and intelligence are the 
basis of this government ; and the duty of all good men is to keep 
it pure. * * * 

" And now, my friend, what can I say that will influence you 
to come here, and enjoy with me the beautiful scenes upon and 
around our Mount Zion ? 

" With the highest respect and affection, I am most truly yours, 

"Amos Lawrexcb. . 

"P. S. — Mrs. L. desires me to present to you and your lady 
her most respectful regard, with the assurance that your writings 
are very precious to her. She is a granddaughter to a clergyman 
of your ' Kirk,' and enjoys much its best writings." 

To the same gentleman he writes soon after : 

"And now let me sjoeak about the 'Royal Preacher.'* I 
expected much, but not so much as I found in it. We, on this 
side the Atlantic, thank you ; and the pictures of some of our 
own great men are drawn to the life, although their history and 
character could not have been in your eye. Truth is the same 
now as in Solomon's time ; and it is surprising that the mass of 
men do not see and acknowledge that ' the saint is greater than 

* A tract by Dr. Hamilton. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 297 

the sage, and discipleship to Jesus the pinnacle of human dignity.' 
I have had, this morning, two calls, from different sections of our 
Union, for your ' Life in Earnest,' ' Literary Attractions of the 
Bible,' ' Solomon,' ' Redeemed in Glory,' &c., which I responded 
to with hearty good-will. Some of the books will go out of the 
country many thousand miles, and will do good. I must shake 
hands with you across the Atlantic, if you can't ' screw up ' your 
courage to come here, and bid you God-sjjeed in all your broad 
plans for the good of your fellow-men. 

" I have a great respect for deep religious feelings, even when 
I cannot see as my friends do ; and therefore pray God to clear 
away, in his good time, all that is now dark and veiled. 

'It is time for me to say fai'owell." 
38 



ClIATTEE XXXIY. 

SIR T. F. BUXTON. — LETTER FROM LADY BUXTON. — ELLIOTT 
CRESSON. — LETTERS. 

After the death of Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton, Mr. 
Lawrence had read what had been published respecting 
his life and character, and had formed an exalted 
opinion of his labors in behalf of the African race. 
A small volume had been issued, entitled " A Study 
for Young Men, or a Sketch of Sir T. F. Buxton," by 
Rev. T. Binuey, of London Mr. Lawrence had pur- 
chased and circulated large numbers of this work, 
which recorded the deeds of one upon whom he con- 
sidered the mantle of Wilberforce to have fallen ; and, 
through a mutual friend, he had been made known to 
Lady Buxton, who writes to him as follows : 

" Very, very grateful am I for your love for him, and, through 
him, to me aud my children. I desire that you may be enriched 
by all spiritual blessings ; and that, through languor and illness 
and infirmity, the Lord may bless and prosper you and the work 
of your hands. I beg your acceptance of the third edition, in 
the large octavo, of the memoir of Sir Fowell." 

Those who have read the memoir referred to will 

298 



DIARY AND COllHESPONDENCE. 299 

remember the writer, before her marriage, as Miss 
Hannah Gurney, a member of that distinguished 
family of Friends of which Mrs. Fry was the ehler 
sister. During the remaining short period of Mr. 
Lawrence's life, a pleasant correspondence was kept 
up, from which a few extracts will hereafter be given. 

To Elliott Cresson, of Philadelphia, the enthusiastic 
and Aeteran champion of the colonization cause, Mr. 
Lawrence writes, June 12, 1851 : 

" My dear OLD Friexd Cresson : I have just re-read your 
kind letter of June 2, and have been feasting upon the treasure 
you sent me in the interesting volume entitled ' Africa Re- 
deemed.' I will set your heart at rest at once by assuring you 
that I feel just as you do towards that land. Do you rcmeralier 
visiting me, a dozen or more years ago. to get me to lead off with 
a thousand-dollar subscription for coloruzation, and my refusino- 
by assuring you that I would not interfere with the burden of 
slavery, then pressing on our own Slave States, until requested 
by them ? * * * * Liberia, in the mean time, has gone 
on, and now promises to be to the black man what ISTew England 
has been to the Pilgrims, and Pennsylvania to the Friends. I 
say, with all my heart, to Gov. Roberts and his associates, God 
speed you, and carry onward and upward the glorious work of 
redeeming Africa ! I had a charming message from a young 
missionary in Africa a few days since, — the Rev. Mr. Hoffman, 
of the Episcopal Mission ; and you will be glad to hear that the 
good work of education for Li1:>cria progresses surely and steadily 
here. jNIy son A. is one of the trustees and directors (Prof 
Greenleaf is president), and has given a thousand dollars from 'a 



300 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

young merchant ; ' and I bid him give another thousand from 
' an old merchant,' which he will do as soon as he returns from 
our old home with his family. Now I say to you, my friend, I 
can sympathize and work with you while I am spared. God he 
praised ! we are greatly favored in many things. No period of 
my life has been more joyous. 

" With constant aifection, I am yours, 

"Amos Lawrence." 

Among other memoranda of the present month is 
found a cancelled note of five hundred dollars, which 
had been given by a clergyman in another State to a 
corporation, vrhich, by reason of various misfortunes, 
he had not been able to pay. Mr. Lawrence had heard 
of the circumstance, and, without the knowledge of 
the clergyman, had sent the required sum to the 
treasurer of the corporation, with directions to cancel 
the obligation. 

(to lady BUXTON.) 

"Boston, July 8, ISf)!. 
" Dear Lady Buxton : Your letter, and the beautiful copy 
of the memoir of your revered and world-wide honored husband, 
reached me on the 26th of June. I have read and re-read your 
heart-touching note with an interest you can understand better 
than I can descril^e. I can say that I thank you, and leave you 
to imagine the rest. Sir Fowell was born the same year, and in 
the same month, that I was ; and his character and his labors I 
have been well acquainted with since he came into public life ; 
and no man of his time stood higher in my confidence and respect. 
Although I have never been in public life, I have been much 
interested in pulilic men ; and have sometimes had my confidence 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 301 

abused, but have generally given it to men who said what thoy 
meant, and did what they said. I feel no respect for the dema- 
gogue, however successful he may be ; but am able to say, with 
the dear and honored friend whose mantle fell upon Sir Fowell, 
' What shadows we are, and what shadows we pursue ! ' I feel 
pity for the man who sacrifices his hopes of heaven for sucli vain 
objects as end in the mere gaze of this world. The ' Study for 
Young Men,' republished here a short time since, is doing such 
work among us as must cheer the spirit of your husband in his 
heavenly home. 

' ' I enclose you a note from Laura 'Bridgman, a deaf, dumb, 
and blind girl, who has been educated at our asylum for the last 
twelve years or more (now about twenty-two years old), which 
may interest you from the fact of her extraordinary situation. 
'• With great respect, I remain most truly yours, 

" Amos Lawrence." 

(to a LADT IN" PHILADELPHIA.) 

" De.\k L. : Your call on me to ' pay up ' makes me feel that 
I had forgotten, and therefore neglected, my promise. I begin 
without preface. When a child, and all the way up to fifty years 
of age, the incidents of revolutionary history were so often talked 
over by the old soldiers who made our house their rendezvous 
whenever they came near it. tliat I feel as if I had been an actor 
in the scenes described. Among these, the Battle of Bunker 
Hill was more strongly impressed upon my mind than any other 
event. My father, then twenty-one years old, was in Captain 
FarwelFs company, a subaltern, full of the light spirit, as you 
may know, having some sparks left when you used to ride on his 
sled and in his wagon, and eat his ' rattle apples,' which were 
coveted by all the children. He was in the breastwork ; and his 
captam was shot through the body just before or just after Pitcah-n 



302 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

was shot. My futlicr did not know Major Pitcaim personally, but 
understood it was he who mounted the breastwork, calling to his 
soldiers to follow, when he pitched into the slight trench outside, 
riddled and dead, as my father always thought as long as he 
lived. But it turned out otherwise. He was brought from the 
field, and lodged in a house in Prince-street, now standing (the 
third from Charlestown Bi'idge) ; and the intelligence was imme- 
diately communicated to the Governor, then in the Royal House, 
now called the Province House. He sent Dr. Kast and an 
officer, accompanied by young Bowdoin as an amateur, to see to 
the major, and report. On entering the chamber, the doctor 
wished to examine the Avound; but Pitcairn declined allowing 
him, saying it was of no use, as he should soon die. When 
pressed by the argument that his excellency desii'ed it, he allowed 
Dr. Kast to open his vest, and the blood, which had been 
stanched, spirted out upon the floor ; so that the room carried the 
mark, and was called ' Pitcairn's Chamber ' until long after the 
peace. The doctor returned immediately to the Governor to 
report ; and, before he could get back, life had fled. He was laid 
out in his regimentals, and was deposited in the vault of St. 
George's Church, now the Stone Chapel, and there remained 
until 1788, when Dr. Winship, of Roxbury, then on a visit to 
Loudon, had occasion to call on Dr. C. Letsom, and informed him 
that he had in his possession the key of the vault ; that he had 
examined the body, which was in so good a state of preservation, 
that he recognized the features ; and that he had counted at least 
thirty marks of musket-balls in various parts of the body. An 
arrangement was made, through Dr. Winship, for the removal of 
the body to England. Dr. William Pitcairn built a vault in the 
Burying-ground of St. Bartholomew, near the hospital, for its 
reception. Capt. James Scott, the commander of a trading vessel 



DIARY AXD CORRESPONDENCE. 303 

between Boston and London at that period, undertook the service 
of removal, although he foresaw difficulty in undertaking the 
business, on account of the strong prejudice of sailors to baring a 
corpse on board. With a view to concealment, the coffin was 
enclosed in a stjuare deal case, containing the church-organ, wliicji 
was to be sent to England for repairs. This case, with ' Organ ' 
inscribed upon it, was placed, as it was said, for better security, 
in a part of the ship near the sailors' berths, and in that situa- 
tion was used occasionally during the passage for their seat or 
table. On arrival of the shij) in the river, an order was obtained 
for the landing of the case : and, as it was necessary to describe 
its contents, the order expressed permission to land a corpse. 
This revealed the stratagem of Capt. Scott, and raised such a 
feeling among the sailors as to show that they would not have 
been quiet had they known the truth respecting their fellow- 
lodger. Major Pitcairn was the only British officer particularly 
regarded by our citizens, as ready to listen to their complaints, 
and, as far as in his power, to relieve them, when not impeded by 
his military duties. Our excellent old friend B. will be inter- 
ested in the ' Stone Chapel ' part of this story, and probably can 
add particulars that I may have omitted. 

" Your affectionate Amos Lawrence." 



CHAPTER XXXV. 

LETTERS. —REV. DR. SCORESBY. — WABASH COLLEGE. 

After receiving a note from a relative of Lady Cole- 
brooke, announcing lier death, at Duuscombc, in the 
island of Barbadoes, Mr. Lawrence wrote the following 
note of sympathy to her husband, Sir William Cole- 
brooke, then Governor of that island. She will be 
remembered as the lady who had formerly visited 
Boston, and who was alluded to in one of his letters, as 
a niece of Major Andre : 

" Dear Sir William : I lose no time in expressing to you the 
feelings of my heart, on reading the brief notice of the last hours 
of dear Lady Colebrooke. All my recollections and associations 
of her are of the most interesting character ; and for yourself I 
feel more than a common regard. We may never meet again in 
this world ; but it matters little, if, -when we are called off, we are 
found ' in line,' and ready to receive the cheering ' Well done ' 
when we reacli that better world we hope for. I trust that you, 
and all your dear ones, have been in the hollow of our Father's 
hand, through the shadings of his face from you ; and that, in his 
own good time, all will be cleared away. 

" Faithfully and respectfully yours, Amos Lawrence. 
" Boston, Aug. 8, 1851." 

304 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 305 

(to the DON'. CHARLES li. HADDOCK, MINISTER OF THE UNITED STATES TO 

PORTUGAL.) 

" Boston, Aug. 19, 1851. 
"Dear and kixd-hearted Friend: Your letters to me before 
leaving the country, and after reaching England, awakened many 
tender rememl)rances of times past, and agreeable hopes of times 
to come. In that, I felt as tliough I had you hy the hand, with 
that encouraging ' Go forward ' in the fear of God, and confidence 
in his fatherly care and guidance. I know your views have 
always put this trust at the head of practical duties, and that you 
will go forward in your present duties, and do better service to the 
country than any man who could be sent. Portugal is a sealed 
book, in a great degree, to us. Who so able to unlock and lay 
open its history as yourself? Now, then, what leisure you have 
may be most profitably applied to the spreading out the treas- 
ures before us ; and, my word for it, your reputation as a writer 
and a thinker will make whatever you may publish of this sort 
desirable to be read by the gi-eat mass of our reading population. 

^7J~ T^ '7^ T^ "Tv "TV 

" I hold that God has given us our highest enjoyments, in 
e\'ery period, from childhood to old age, in the exercise of our 
talents and our feelings with reference to his presence and over- 
sight ; and that, at any moment, he may call us off, and that we 
may thus be left to be among the children of light or of darkness, 
according to his word and our preparation. These enjoyments of 
childhood, of middle age, of mature life, and of old age, are all 
greatly increased by a constant reference to the source from 
whence tliey come ; and the danger of great success in life is 
more to be feared, in our closing account, than anything else. A 
brief space will find us in the earth, and of no further consequence 
than as we shall have marked for good the generation of men 



306 DIARY AND COURESDOXDENCE. 

growing up to take our places. The title of an honest man, who 
feai'ed God, is worth more than all the honors and distinction of 
the world. Pray, let me hear from you, and the dear lady, whom 
I hope to escort once more over the sides of our ]\Iount Zion, and 
introduce to some of my children and grandchildren settled upon 
the borders ; and, if any stranger coming this way from you will 
accept such facilities as I can give to our institutions, I shall 
gladly render them. It is now many years since I have sat at 
table with my family, and I am now better than I have been at 
any time during that period ; in short, I am light-hearted as a 
child, and enjoy the childi'en's society with all the zest of early 
days. I must say, ' God speed you, my friend,' and have you 
constantly in the hollow of his hand ! In all kind remembrances, 
Mrs. L. joins me, to your lady and yourself 

" Faithfully and respectfully your friend, 

" Amos Lawrexce." 

On the same day that the preceding letter was 
penned, Mr. Lawrence, in acknowledgment of some 
work sent to him by the Rev. Dr. Scorcsby, of Brad- 
ford, England, wrote the following letter. That gen- 
tleman had visited this country twice, and had made 
many friends in Boston. Once an Arctic traveller, and 
a man of great scientific acquirement, he has now 
become an eminent and active clergyman in the Church 
of England, and has devoted all his energies to the 
task of elevating the lower orders of the population 
where his field of labor has been cast. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 307 

" Boston, Aug. 19, 1851. 

" My dear Friend : Your letter from Tonivuiy, of ninth 
July, reached me on the sixth of this month. It brought to 
memory our agreeable intercourse of former years, and cheered 
me with the hope that I might again see you in this world, and 
again shake your hand in that cordial, social way that goes direct 
to the heart. I had been much interested in tlie account brought 

by , and iu your kind messages by him. Your memorials 

of your father interest me exceedingly, and I thank you most 
sincerely for the volume and the sermon you sent. This sermon 
I sent to a friend of mine, and also a friend of yours, who 
became such after hearing you preach in Liverpool. Professor 

, of College, is a most talented, efficient, and popular 

teacher ; and his present position he has attained by his industry 
and his merit. He was a poor youth, in Liverpool, who followed 
you in your preaching ; came here, and went as an apprentice to 
a mechanical business ; was noticed as a bright fellow ; was edu- 
cated by persons assisting him, and graduated at College. 

He became a tutor, and is now a professor, and is an honor to the 
college and his nation. We are all at work in New England, 
and now feel a twinge from too fast driving in some branches of 
business ; but, in the aggregate, our country is rapidly advancing 
in wealth, power, and strength, notwithstanding the discontent of 
our Southern brethren. Wo have allowed the ' black spot ' to be 
too far spread over our land ; it should have been restrained more 
than thirty years ago, and then our old Slave States would have 
had no just cause of complaint. I am called off, and must bid 
you farewell, with kind regards of Mrs. L., and my own most 
faithful and affectionate remembrance. Amos Lawrence. 

" Eev. WiLLLiM ScoRESBY, D.D., Torquay, Devonshire, Eng." 



308 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

(to president HOPKINS.) 

" Boston, Nov. 15, 1851. 
" My dear Friend : This i.s a rainy day, -which keeps me 
housed ; and, to improve it in ' pursuit,' I have a Inindle made 
up, of the size of a small ' haycock,' and directed to you liy rail- 
road, with a few lines enclosed for the amusement of the children. 
I have told A. and L. that they could n"t jump over it ; but H. 
could, by having a clear course of two rods. Louis Dwight has 
spent a half-hour with nic this morning, e.xhibiting and explaining 
his plan for the new Lunatic Asylum of the State, which I think 
is the best model I have ever seen, and is a decided improvement 
on all our old ones. The committee, of which Governor Briggs is 
chairman, will give it a careful consideration and comparison 
with Dr. Belfs, and perhaps Dr. Butler's and others ; and, with 
such an amount of talent and experience, the new asylum will be 
the best, I trust, that there is on this side of the Atlantic. Louis 
Dwight is in fine spirits, and in full employ in his peculiar line. 
The new institution in New York for vagrant children will very 
likely be built on his plan. He is really doing his work most 
successfully, in classing and separating these young sinners, so 
that they may be reclaimed, and trained to become useful citizens ; 
in that light, he is a public benefactor. * * * 
" Faithfully and affectionately yours, 

" Amos Lawrence." 

In a lettei' to a friend, written on Sunday, and 
within a few days of the preceding, Mr. Lawrence 
says, after describing one of his severe attacks : 

" I am not doing wrong, I think, in consecrating a part of the 
day to you, being kept within doors by one of those kindly admo- 



DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 309 

nitions which speaks through tlie hoily, and tells me that my 
home here is no shelter from the storm. I had been unusually 
well for some weeks past, and it seemed to me that my days 
passed with a rapidity and joyousness that nothing short of the 
intercourse with the loved ones around me could have caused. 
What can he more euiphatic, until my final summons? If my 
work is done, and well dune, I should not ch-ead the summons ; 
pray that it may be, and that we may meet again after a brief 
separation. I am hoping to be safely housed by and by where 
cold and heat, splendid furniture, luxurious living, and handsome 
houses, and attendants, will all be thought of as they really 
merit." 

Mr. Lawrence had, for a considerable time, been 
interested in tlie Wabasli College, at CrawfordsAalle, 
Indiana ; and, on the 24th of November, announced to 
the Trustees a donation from Mrs. L. of twelve hundred 
dollars, to found four free scholarships for the use of the 
academy at Groton. He adds : 

'■I would recommend that candidates for the scliolarshijjs who 
abstain flora the use of intoxicating drinks and tobacco always 
have a preference. This is not to be taken as a prohibition, but 
only as a condition to give a preference." 

Mr. Lawrence speaks of his interest in Wabash Col- 
lege, growing out of his affection and respect for its 
President, the Eev. Charles White, D.D., who went 
from New England, and with whom he had become 
acquainted during a visit which that gentleman had 



310 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

made to his native State. Eight days after this dona- 
tion to Wabash College, Mr. Lawrence enclosed to 
Rev. Dr. Pond, of the Theological School at Bangor, 
Maine, the svim of five hundred dollars ; which he 
says, with other sums already subscribed by others 
for new professorships, would " prove a great blessing 
to all who resort to the institution through all time." 



CHAPTER XXXVI. 

DIARY.— AMOUNT OF CHARITIES. — LETTERS. — THOMAS TARBELL. 
— UNCLE TOBY. — REV. DR. LOWELL. 

'■'■January 1, 1852. — The value of my property is somewhat 
more than it -was a year ago, and I pray God tliat I may be faith- 
ful in its use. My life seems now more likely to be spared for a 
longer_ season than for many years past ; and I never enjoyed 
myself more highly. Praise the Lord, my soul ! 

"P. S. — The outgoes for all objects since January 1, 1842 
(ten years), have been six hundred and four thousand dollars, 
more than five sixths of which have been applied in making other 
people happy ; and it is no trouble to find objects for all I have 
to spare." 

This SLiui, in addition to the subscriptions and dona- 
tions for the yeai" 1852, makes the amount of his 
expenditures for charitable purposes, during the last 
eleven years of his life, to be about five hundred and 
twenty-five thousand dollars. From 1829 to 1842, the 
sum expended for like appropriations was, according 
to his memoranda, one hundred and fourteen thousand 
dollars ; making, for the last twenty-three years of his 
life, the sum of six hundred and tliirty-nine thousand 

311 



312 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

dollars expended in charity. Taking the amount of his 
property at various times, as noted by himself, from 
the year 1807 to 1829, a period of twenty-two years, 
with his known liberality and habits of systematic char- 
ity, it would be safe to assert that during his life he 
expended seA^en hundred thousand dollai's for the ben- 
efit of his fellow-men. Many jiersons have done more ; 
but few perhaps have done as much in proportion to the 
means which they had to bestow. 

In a letter to President Hopkins, dated March 31, 
Mr. Lawrence writes : 

" I am interested in everything you write ahout in your last 
letter ; but among the items of deepest interest is the fact of the 
religious feeling manifested by the young men ; and I pray God 
it may take deep root, and gi'ow, and become the controlling 
power in forming their character for immortality. I trust they 
will count the cost, and act consistently. May God speed them 
in this holy work ! " 

A few days later, he writes on the same subject : 

" And now let us turn to matters of more importance ; the 
awakening of the young men of your college to their highest 
interest, — the salvation of their souls. I have been moved to 
tears in reading the simple statement of the case, and I pray God 
to perfect the good work thus begun. I have much to think of 
to-day, this being my sixty-sixth birth-day. The question comes 
home to me, What I am rendering to the Lord for all his benefits ; 
and the answer of conscience is, Imperfect service. If accepted, 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 313 

it will be through mercy ; and, with this feeling of hope, I keep 
about, endeavoring to scatter good seed as I go forth in my daily 
ministrations." 

The following correspondence was not received in 
time to be placed in the order of its date, but is now 
given as an illustration of Mr. Lawrence's views on 
some important points, and also as an instance of his 
self-control. In the autumn of ISiT, he became ac- 
quainted with the Rev. Dr. , a Scotch Presbyterian 

clergyman, then on a visit to some friends in Boston. 
During a drive in the environs, with this gentleman 
and the Rev. Dr. Blagden, Mr. Lawrence made a 
remark of a practical nature upon some religions topic, 
which did not coincide with the views of his Scotch 
friend ; and a debate ensued, which was characterized 
by somewhat more of warmth than was warranted by 
the nature of the subject. Mutual explanations and 
apologies followed, and the correspondence, which was 

continued after the return of Dr. to Scotland, 

shows that the discussion on the occasion referred to 
had caused no diminution of their mutual regard or 
good-will. 

The Rev. Dr. Blagden, in a note to the editor, dated 
Boston, April 18, 1855, writes as follows : 

" As the result of our incidental conversation on Monday last, 
let me say, that the facts of which we spoke occurred during a 

di'ive which the Rev. Dr. , of Scotland, and I were enjoy- 

40 



314 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

ing with your father, in his carriage, at his kind invitation, in 
October, 1847. 

" Without being able to recall the precise connectioi^ in which 
the remarks were made, I only now remember that Mr. Lawrence 
was led to speak with some degree of warmth, but with entire 
kindness, on the great error of relying on any idea of justification 
before God by faith, without corresponding works ; so that, to one 
not familiar with the religious events in the history of this com- 
munity, which, by operating on Mr. Lawrence's habits of thought, 
might well lead him to be jealous of any view of faith which did 
not directly express the necessity of good works, his remarks 
might very readily have seemed like a direct attack on that great 
truth of justification by faith, which Luther aflirmed to be, as it 
was held or rejected, tlie test of a falling or rising church. 

" Immediately, that which the late Edward L'ving, in one of 
his sermons, under the name of ' Orations,' calls the ' ingcnium 

perfervidum Scotorum,' burst from the Rev. Dr. ■, with 

something of that zeal for the doctrines of Kno.x and Calvin for 
which I understand he has been somewhat remarkable in his own 
country. He vehemently declared his abhorrence of any such 
denial of the first and fundamental truth of the Gospel, evidently 
taking it somewhat in the light of an insult to us as the preachers 
of that truth. He ended by saying, with much force and warmth, 
that the apostle Paul sometimes condensed the whole of the Gos- 
pel into a single phrase ; and one of these phrases, as expressed 
in the Epistle to the Philippians, he commended to the notice of 
Mr. Lawrence, namely, ' We are the circumcision which worship 
God in the spirit ; and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no 
confidence in the flesh.' 

" Mr. Lawrence met this strong, and apparently indignant, and 
truly honest expression of feeling, with entire courtesy and self- 



BIAUY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 315 

command, but with evident and deep emotion ; and, repressing all 
expression of displeasure, he gradually led the conversation to less 
unwelcome subjects, so that our ride ended pleasantly, though the 
embarrassment created by this event continued, in a lessening 
degree, to its close. 

" It will probaljly add to the interest of the whole transaction, 
in your own mind, if I state, not only what you seemed aware of 
on Monday, that your father sent me, a day or two after, ' Barr's 
Help ' (I believe is the name of the volume), with a very kind 
and polite note, alluding to what had passed, and a paper con- 
taining some development of his own religious belief; but Rev. 

Dr. , also, soon after, in alluding to the circumstances in 

a note to me, on another subject, and which is now before me, 
wrote : 

'• 'I regret the warmth with which I did so. Alas! it is my 
infirmity; but it was only a momentary flash, for I was enabled, 
through a silent act of prayer, to get my mind purged of all heat, 
before I ventured to resume the conversation on the vital topic 
which our good and kind friend himself was led to introduce.' 

" I suspect this will reach you at an hour too late entirely for 
the use which you thought might possibly l)e made of it. It may, 
however, have some little interest, as a further development of the 
excellent character of your father ; and it refers to a scene of 
which I have never been in the habit of speaking to others, but 
which I shall always remember with great interest, as one among 
many pleasing and profitable recollections of him." 

The following extracts arc taken from the paper 
referred to in the preceding communication : 



316 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" Boston, NovRmber 4, 1847. 
"To Rev. G. W. Ewgdex, D.D. 

" Eev. and dear Sir : Our interesting ride last Thursday 
has peculiar claims upon me as a teacher and a preacher for a 
better world. To one who knows me well, my unceremonious 
manner to our friend would not seem so strange ; but it was none 
the less unkind in me to treat him thus. 

" My first impressions are generally the right ones, and govern 
the actions of daily and hourly experience here ; and these impres- 
sions were entirely favorable to our friend ; and my treatment, up 
to the moment that you 'poured your oil upon the waters,' had 
been such as I am now well pleased with. But the conversation 
then commenced ; and the lecture, illustrations, arguments, and 
consequences, were all stereotyped in my mind, having been 
placed there twenty-seven years ago by a learned and pious 
Scotchman, whose character came back to my memory like a 
flash of light. It is enougli to say that a multitude of matters 
wholly adverse to my first impressions left me no command of my 
courtesies ; and I stopped the conversation. * * * 

" I believe that our Saviour came among men to do them good, 
and, having performed his mission, has returned to his Father and 
to our Father, to his God and our God ; and if, by any means, he 
will receive me as a poor and needy sinner with the ' Well done ' 
into the society of those whom he shall have accepted, I care not 
what sort of istn I am ranked under here. 

" There is much, I think, that may be safely laid aside among 
Christians who are honest, earnest, and self-denying. Again I say, 
I have no hope in isms, but have strong hope in the cross of Christ. 

" The little book* I send is a fuller exposition of tlie Kirk's 

* " Help to Professing Cln-istians. By Rev. John Burr. Published by 
Perkins and Marvin. Boston, 1831." 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 317 

doctrine than our frieucVs. I have reviewed it, and see no reason 
to alter a prayer or an expression. Return it at your leisure, 
with the two notes of our friend to me since our drive. Soon 
after I left you, I came home, sat down at my table to write a 
note as an apology to him for my rudeness in stopping his dis- 
course, fainted, went to bed ; next day, ate three ounces of crusts, 
rode out, and went to bed sick with a cold in my face. For tlie 
following forty-eight hours, I did not take an ounce of food ; the 
slightest amount of liquid sustained me ; and yesterday was the 
first day of my being a man. To-day, I called to see and apologize 
to you." ***** 

(to a friend in south CAROLINA.) 

"Boston, June 12, 1852. 
" My dear Friend : The announcement of the death of your 
beloved wife, and the queries and suggestions you made, touched 
me in a tender place. You and your dear wife are separated, it 
is true ; but she is in the upper room, you in the lower. She is 
■with Jesus, where, with his disciples, he keeps the feast ; and, not 
long hence, he will say to you, ' Come up hither.' Your spirit 
and hers meet daily at the same throne, — hers to praise, yours to 
pray ; and, when you ne.xt join her in person, it will be to part no 
more. Is not the prospect such as to gild the way with all those 
charms, which, in our childhood, used to make our hours pass too 

*^10WiV ' ^ "^ ^ "T^ "^ 

" My connection with the people of your State, growing out of 
my marriage, has bi'ought me into personal intercourse, for more 
than thirty years past, with a great family connection, embracing 
in its circle many of your distinguished characters. All the M. 
family, of whom your present Governor is one, came from the 
same stock ; and the various ramifications of that family at the 
South include, I suppose, a great many thousand souls. I, 



318 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

therefore take a lively interest in everything interesting to your 
people. We have hot heads, and so have you ; but I think your 
people misjudge, when they think of setting up an independent 
government. The peculiar institution which is so dear to them 
will never be interfered with by sober, honest men ; but will never 
be allowed to be carried where it is not now, under the Federal 
government. Politicians, like horse-jockeys, strive to cover up 
wind-broken constitutions, as though in full health ; but hard 
driving reveals the defect, and, within thirty years, the old Slave 
States will feel compelled to send their chattels away to save 
themselves from bankruptcy and starvation. I have never coun- 
tenanced these abolition movements at the North ; and have lately 
lent a hand to the cause of Colonization, which is destined to make 
a greater change in the condition of the blacks than any event 
since the Christian era. * * * 

" You need no new assurance of my interest in, and respect for, 
yourself, and the loved ones around you. I enjoy life as few old 
men do, I believe ; for my family seem to live around and for 
me. My nephew by marriage, Franklin Pierce, seems to be a 
prominent candidate for the ' White House ' for the next four 
years. He is the soul of honor, and an old-fashioned Democrat, 
born and bred, and to be depended on as such ; but, as I am an 
old-fashioned George Washington, John Jay Federalist, from my 
earliest days, and hope to continue to be, I shall prefer one of this 
stamp to him. * * * 

" With a heart overflowing, I hardly know where to stop. We 
shall meet in the presence of the Saviour, if we liold fast to the 
hem of his garment ; and I hope may be of the number of those 
whose sins are forgiven. 

"Ever yours, Amos L.vwrexce." 

During the summer, a small volume appeared, 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE.. 319 

entitled " Uncle Toby's Stories on Tobacco." Mr. 
Lawrence read it ; and the views there inculcated so 
nearly coincided with his own, so often expressed 
during his whole life, that he caused two editions, of 
some thousands of copies, to be published and circu- 
lated, principally by the boys of the Mather School. 
On this subject, he writes to President Hopkins, under 
date of Aug. 5 : 

" My two last scraps told their own stories to the children, and 
to-day you will receive a package by express that may require 
explanation. Uncle Toby has hit the nail on the head in tellincf 
his tobacco stories to American lads ; and I think your students 
will do good service in carrying them among their fi-iends 
wherever they are, to show them how much better it is to prevent 
an evil than to remedy it ; and, taking school-boys as they are, 
these stories will do more good than any that have been published. 
I met the author yesterday accidentally at the American Sabbath 
School Union Depository, where I had just paid fur the fifty 
copies sent to you, and he was very earnest to have me write a few 
lines for him to publish in his book ; but I referred him to the 
three hundred boys of the Mather School, who are full of the 
matter to help other school-boys to do as they are doing. How- 
ever, I may say to him, that, as a school-boy, I was anxious to be 
manly ^ like the larger boys ; and, by the advice of one, I took a 
quid, and kept it till I was very sick, but did not tell my parents 
what the matter was ; and, from that time to this, have never 
chewed, smoked, or snuffed. To this abstinence from its use (and 
from spirit) I owe, under God, my present position in sf)ciety. 
Further, I have always given the preference to such persons as I 



320 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

have employed, for more than forty years past, who have a\oi(led 
rum and tobacco ; and my experience has been such as to confirm 
me that it is true wisdom to have done so. The evil is growing 
in a fearfully rapid ratio among us; and i-equires the steady course 
of respected and honored men to prevent its spread, by influencing 
the school-children of our land against becoming its slaves. You 
will please use the fifty copies in the way you think best. If my 
life is spared, the Mather School boys will be allowed to tell their 
own experience to the l)oys of all the other public sehools in this 
city and neighborhood. In short, I look to these boys influencing 
three millions of boys within the next thirty or forty years. Is 
not this work worth looking after? " 

The following well-merited tribute to the character 
of a respected citizen, who devoted his life to the pro- 
motion of every good object, is extracted from a note 
written by Mr. Lawrence to the Hon. Benjamin Seaver, 
tlien Mayor of the city, and dated Aug. 2-3 : 

"My FRIEND Seaver: I have desired, for some weeks past, 
to inquire of you sonic further particulars of the disposition our 
friend Tarbell * made of his property. You mentioned that some- 
thing would be paid over to A. & A. Lawrence, and something to 
the Old Ladies' Home, which institution he helped forward by 
his labors and his influence, in an important stage of its existence ; 
and he was called off just as he was beginning to enjoy the fruits 
of his labor, in making a nmltitude of old ladies happy in thus 
supplying them a homo for the remainder of their days on earth. 
Our friend has passed on ; but I doubt not that his labors have 

* The late Thomas Tarbell, originally from Ciroton, Mass. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 321 

prepared him to enter that world where there is no weariness or 
want, and all sufferings are at an end. I have journeyed side by 
side, for more than three-score years, with our friend : and can 
say, with truth, that I never knew him guilty of a dishonest or 
dishonorable act, and that his life was a practical exponent of his 
Christian principles. I pray to our Father to make me more 
faithful in doing the work our friend had so much at heart, while 
I can do it. My share of the money,* coming from his estate, I 
shall wish paid over to the Old Ladies' Home, and I doubt not 
brother A. will wish the same done with his share. This appro- 
priation will increase our friend's happiness, even in his heavenly 
home ; for the voice from Heaven proclaims, ' Blessed are the 
dead which die in the Lord from henceforth ; that they may rest 
from their labors, and their works do follow them.' " 

The editor feels some delicacy in inserting the fol- 
lowing, from a gentleman still living, and in our own 
vicinity ; but the tribute to Mr. Lawrence, coming, as 
it does, from a divine so distinguished in all those 
qualities which adorn his own profession, as well as for 
every Christian virtue, is too flattering to be omitted : 

" Elmwood, Sept. 3. 
" My dear Friend : I take such paper as happens to be 
near mc, in my sick chamber, to thank you for the l)ooks and 
pamphlets, which I have read as much as my dim sight and weak 
nerves will allow me at present to read. I wish, when you write 
to your friend Dr. Hamilton, you would thank him for me for his 

* This was a debt contracted by Mr. T., in 1826, amounting, at that 
time, to about (ifteon hundred dollars, when he failed in business. The 
amount of the debt was soon after transferred to the " Old Ladies' Home." 
41 



322 DIARY AND COERESPONDENCE. 

eloquent and evangelical appeals for Christian truth and duty. 
Tell him I am a Congregational Minister of Boston, but no sect- 
arian ; that I was matriculated at the University of Edinburgh, 
fifty years ago, and studied divinity there under Drs. Hunter, 
Micklejohn, Moodie, &c., and moral philosophy, under Dugakl 
Stewart ; — that my particular friends were David Dickson, since 
Minister of St. Cuthberfs, Edinburgh; David Wilkie, since 
Minister of Old Gray Friar's Church, Edinburgh; Patrick 
McFarlauc, since ISIinister in Glasgow and Greenock ; Thomas 
Brown, since Professor of Moral Philosophy at Edinburgh ; David 
Brewster, since "Sir David, &c. : most of whom he prol)ably 
knows. Tell him I should be glad of his correspondence, as I 
have that of his friend, Principal Lee, of the University of Edin- 
burgh ; and tliat we should lie glad to see him in Boston. I was 
happy to see your name appended to a petition on the sulject 
of the liquor law, though I always expect to find it among the 
advocates of every benevolent enterprise within your reach. Your 
visit did me much good. I have much valued your friendship, 
and your manifestations of respect and regard for me. Heaven 
bless you and yours, and make you more and more a blessing ! 
Come and see me when you can, my dear friend. With much 
affection and respect, 

" Your old friend, Ciiakles Loavell. 

"P. S. — I write with a feeble hand, dim sight, and nervous 
temperament."' 

In enclosing the preceding note to the Rev. Dr. 
Hamilton, Mr. Lawrence writes, Sept. 4 : 

" The writer of the foregoing is the Eev. Dr. Lowell, of this 
city, who is broken down in health, but not at all in his confidence 



DIART AND CORRESPONDENCE. OZo 

and hope and joy in the beloved Jesus. Of all men I have ever 
known, Dr. Lowell is one of the brightest exemplars of the 
character and teachings of the Master; for all denominations 
respect him, and confide in him. Fur move than forty years I 
have known him ; and, in all the relations of a good pastor to his 
people, I have never known a better. I have met him in the sick 
chamber, with the dying, and in the house of prayer. In the 
character of a teacher, and a leader of the people heavenward, no 
one among us has been more valued. Although I have not been 
a member of his church, he has, in times of great virgency, sup- 
plied our pulpit, and has always been ready to attend my family 
and friends when asked. I sent him such of your writings as I 
had in store for circulation, ' The Royal Preacher ' among them ; 
and I must say to you that I think no living man is preaching to 
greater multitudes than you are at this day. I have circulated 
tens of thousands of your tracts and volumes, and, if I am spared, 
hope to continue the good work. Millions of souls will be influenced 
by your labors." 



CIIAPTE]! XXXVII. 

CORRESPONDENCE. — DIARY. 

(from LADV BUXTON.) 

" NoRTHEurp's Hill, Sept. 8, 1852. 

" My dear Friend : Again I have to thank you for your 
kind remembrance of me in your note and little book on the 
abuse of tobacco, and your sympathy with me in my late deep 
anxiety, ending in the removal of my most tenderly beloved and 
valued daughter Priscilla. It pleased God to take her to himself 
on June 18, to the inexpressible loss and grief of myself, and her 
husband and children. We surely sorrow with hope ; for she had 
loved and followed the Lord Jesus from her childhood, and had 
known and obeyed the Holy Scriptures, which did make her, 
under the influence of the blessed Spirit, wise unto salvation. 
To her, to live was Chi'ist, and therefore to die, gain ; and we are 
thankful, and rejoice for her. Her spirit is with the Lord, 
beholding and sharing his glory, and reunited to her dearest 
father, brothers, and sisters, and many beloved on earth, in joy 
unspeakable. Still, we do and are permitted to mourn. * * 

" Priscilla traced the foundation of Iier illness to the great exer- 
tion she used in revising and altermg her father's work on the 
remedy for the slave-trade. The stress upon her feelings and 
mind was too great for her susceptible nature. I believe it might 
be traced further back to her very gi-eat efforts to assist her father 
in his pul.ilic Inisiness ; so that I may say, I have had to part 

824 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 325 

with the two most beloved, and gifted nea»ly, I have ever known, 
for the cause of God. But the comfort is intense that they can- 
not lose the abundant recompense of reward given through mercy 
and favor, not for any merits of their own, to those who love and 
serve the Lord. I must thank you most warmly again for the 
valuable gift of ' Uncle Tom's Cabin.' When it arrived, it was 
unknown in this country ; now it is universally read, but sold at 
such a cheap rate, in such poor print, that this very beautiful 
copy is quite sought after. How wonderfully successful a work 
it has proved ! I hope your little book upon toliacco may be of 
use here. I shall send it to my grandsons at Rugby. I fear you 
have been suffering much from bodily illness and infirmity, my 
dear fi-iend. I trust your interesting circle about you are all 
well and prospering, and enjoying the blessing and presence of 
the Saviour. With kindest regards and affection, I am yours very 
sincerely, H. Buxton." 

^^ September 28, 1852. — By a singular coincidence, at the 
same time I received Lady Buxton's letter, I received one from 
' Mrs. Sunny Side,' * from her sick chamber, asking the loan of 
some of Miss Edgeworth's works ; also a note from Mrs. Stowe, 
giving me some information respecting the publication of ' Uncle 
Tom's Cabin ' in England and Germany ; also a letter from our 
minister in Portugal ; and, three or four hours later, ' Uncle 
Toby ' called, having spent the day in the Mather School, lectur- 
ing on tobacco." 

From a letter written about tlds time, an extract is 

* Mrs. Phelps, wife of Professor Phelps, of Andover, and daughter of 
Professor Stuart, the authoress of " Sunny Side," " Peep at Number 
Five," and other popular works. 



326 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

made, wliicli is iutftrestiug as showing his system of 
diet : 

'•]My own wants are next to nothing, as I live on the most 
simple food, — crusts and coffee for breakfast ; crusts and cham- 
pagne for dinner, with never more than three ounces of chicken, 
or two ounces of tender beef, without any vegetable, together 
eight ounces ; coarse wheat-meal crusts, and two or three ounces 
of meat, in the twenty-four hours, — beginning hungry, and leav- 
ing off more hungry. I have not sat at table with my flimily for 
fifteen years, nor eaten a full meal during that time, and am now 
more hale and hearty tlian during that whole period." 

(to a lady in FLORIDA.) 

" Boston, Oct. 14, 18.52. 

" Dear Mrs. : Your deeply interesting note reached me 

•within the last half-hour ; and I feel that no time should be lost 
in my reply. My life has been protracted beyond all my friends' 
expectations, and almost licyond my own hopes ; yet I enjoy the 
days with all the zest of early youth, and feel myself a spare 
hand to do such work as the Master lays out before me. This of 
aiding you is one of the things for which I am spared ; and I 
therefore forward one hundred dollars, which, if you are not wil- 
ling to accept, you may use for the benefit of some other person 
or persons, at your discretion. Your precious brother has passed 
on : and, in God's good time, I hope to see him face to face, and 
to receive, through the Beloved, the ' Well done ' promised to 
such as have used their Lord's trusts as he approves. I enclose 
you Lieut. "s letter on his return from sea. * * * * 

'■ I had a charming ride yesterday with ray nephew Frank 
Pierce, and told him I thought he must occupy the White House 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 327 

the next term, but that I sliould yo for Scott. Pierce is a fine, 
spirited fellow, and will do his duty wherever placed : liut Scott 
will be my choice for President of the United States. God bless 
you, my child, and have you in the hollow of his hand, in these 
days of trial. Your friend, A. L." 

(to the HON. JONATHAN' PHILLII'S.) 

" Boston, Oct. 25, 18.52. 

" To MY RESPECTED AND HONORED Friexd : The changing 
scenes of life sometimes recall with peculiar freshness the events 
and feelings of years long past ; and such is the case with me, 
growing out of the death of our great New England statesman, 
who has, for a long period of 3'cars, been looked up to as preach- 
ing and teaching the highest duties of American citizens with a 
power rarely equalled, never surpassed. He is now suddenly 
called to the bar of that Judge who sees not as man sees, and 
where mercy, not merit, will render the cheering ' AVcll done ' to 
all who have used their trusts as faithful stewards of their Lord, 
— the richest prize to be thought of Our great man had great 
virtues, and, doubtless, some defects ; and I pray God that the 
former may be written in the hearts of his countrymen, the latter 
in the sea. Here I begin the story that comes over my thoughts. 

" About forty years ago, walking past your father's house, 
with my wife and some of our family friends, on a bright, 
moonlight nisrht, we were led to discuss the character of the 
owner (your honored father) ; some of the party wishing they 
might possess a small part of the property which would make 
them happy, others something else, when my own wish was 
expressed. It was, that I might use whatever Pi'ovidence might 
allow me to possess as faithfully as your ftither used his posses- 
sions, and that I should esteem such a reputation as his a better 



328 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

inheritance for my children than the highest political honors the 
country could bestow. A few years later, I was visiting Stafford 
Sjirings with my wife, and thei-e met you and Mrs. P., and first 
made your acquaintance. Still a few years later, I became per- 
sonally acquainted with 3'our father by being chosen a Director 
of the Massachusetts Bank, he being President. Still later, I 
became more intimate with yourself by being a member of the 
Legislature with you, when the seceders from Williams College 
petitioned to be chartered as Amherst College, which you opposed 
by the best speech that was made ; and we voted against the sepa- 
ration, and, I believe, acted together on all the subjects brought 
up during that session. Since then, which is about thirty years, 
I have been a successful business man, although, for the last twenty 
years, I have been a broken machine, that, by all common experi- 
ence, should have been cast aside. But I am still moving ; and no 
period of my life has had more to charm, or has had more flowers 
by the wayside, than my every-day life, with all my privations. 
The great secret of the enjoyment is, that I am able to do some 
further work, as your father's example taught me, when the ques- 
tion was discussed near forty years ago. Can you wonder, then, 
my friend, that I wish our names associated in one of the best 
literary institutions in this country ; viz., Williams College ? 
My interest in it seemed to be accidental, but must have been 
providential ; for we cannot tell, till we reach a better world, 
what influence your speecli bad in directing my especial atten- 
tion to the noble head of the college, when I first met him in a 
private circle in this city ; and, since then, my respect for his 
character, my love for him as a man and a brother, has caused 
me to feel an interest in his college that I never should have felt 
without this personal intercourse. The two hundred young men 
there need more teachers ; and the college, in view of its wants, 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 329 

has appealed to the puljlic for fifty thousand dollars, to place it 
upon an independent footing. ***** 

•' There is money enough for all these good objects ; and, if 
our worthy citizens can only be made to see that it Tvill be 
returned to them four-fold, in the enjoyment of life iu the way 
that never clogs, it \ii\l not be thought presumptuous in me to 
advise to such investments. From long observation, I am satis- 
fied that we do better liy Ijeing our own executors, than by hoard- 
ing large sums for our descendants. Pardon me for thus writing 
to you : but knowing, as I do, that the college has commenced its 
appeal for aid, I am sure you will e.xcuse me, whether you con- 
tribute to its aid or not. With great respect, I am, as I have 
always been, 

" Your friend, Amos Laweence. 

" P. S. — If you wish to talk with me, I shall be rejoiced to 
say what I know about the college." 

Iu his diary of the same date, Mr. Lawrence 
writes : 

" 6 p. M. — My good old friend has called to see and talk with 
me, and a most agreeable conversation we have had. He ex- 
pressed good wishes for the college, and will subscribe a thousand 
dollars at once, which is a cheering beginning in this city. The 
interest in the college will grow here, when people know more 
about it." 

"Boston, Satunlaij momwcj, Nov. 13, 1852. — The circum- 
stances which have brought me the following letter from my 
valued friend, ' Honest John Davis,' are these : Many years ago, 
I learned, from undoubted sources, that his pecuniary losses, 



330 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

through the ageiicy of others, had so straitened him as to decide 
him to take his two sons from Williams College, -which seemed to 
me a pity ; and I therefore enclosed to him five hundred dollars, 
■ffith a rci[ucst that he would keep his boys in college, and, when 
his afiairs became right again, that he might pay the same to the 
college for some future needy pupils. Two or three years after- 
wards, he said he was intending to hand over to the college the 
five hundred dollars, which I advised not to do until it was per- 
fectly convenient for hiin. The circumstances which now call 
him out are very interesting ; and, to mc, the money seems worth 
ten times the amount received in the common business of life. 
Within ten minutes after Mr. Davis's letter was read to me. Dr. 
Peters, the agent of the college to collect funds for- its necessities, 
called in to report progress in his work. I immediately handed 
over the five hundred dollars from John Davis, with a request 
that he would acknowledge its reception to my frieml at once." 

" Worcester, Nov. 12, 18.52. 
"My dear Sir: I have been in Boston hut once since my 
return from Washington, and then failed to see you. Neverthe- 
less, you are seldom absent from our thoughts ; you do so much 
which reminds us of the duties of life, and fixes in our minds 
sentiments of cherished regard and unalterable affection. No one 
can desire a more envialde distinction, a more emphatic name, 
than he whom all tongues proclaim to be the good man ; the man 
who comprehends his mission, and, with unvarying steadiness of 
purpose, fulfils it. There is such a thing as mental superiority, 
as elevated station, as commanding influence, as glory, as honor ; 
and these are sometimes all centered in the same individual ; but, 
if that individual has no heart ; if humanity is not mixed in his 
nature : if he has no ear for the infirmities, the wealcnesses, and 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 331 

sufferings of his fellow-beings. — he is like the massive, coarse 
walls of a lofty fortress, having sti'ength, greatness, and power ; 
but, as a man, he is unfinished. He may have much to excite 
surprise or to overawe, but nothing to awaken the finer sensibil- 
ities of our nature, or to win our love. The divine efflatus has 
never softened the soul of such a man. The heavenly attributes 
of mercy, brotherly love, and charity, have never touched his 
heart with sympathy for his race. He forgets that a fellow- 
being, however humble, is the work of the same God who made 
him, and that the work of the Almighty has a purpose. He for- 
gets the great command to love our neighbor. He forgets that 
all who are stricken down with disease, poverty, affliction, or 
suffering, are our neighbors ; and that he who ministers to such, 
be he Jew or Samaritan, is, in the lofty, scriptural sense, a 
neighbor. Neither the hereditary descent of the Levite, nor the 
purple of the priest, makes a neighbor ; but it is he who binds 
up the bleeding wound. This is the act upon which Heaven 
places its seal of approval, as pleasing in the sight of him that is 
perfect. Where there is an absence of purity of heart or gener- 
ous sympathy, the man lacks the most ornate embellishment of 
character, that lustrous brightness which is the type of heaven. 
To minister to the necessities of the humble and lowly is the 
work of God"s angels : and the man who follows their example 
cannot be far from his Maker. You have the means of doina; 
good ; but have what is greater, and a more marked distinction, 
the disposition to do it when and where it is needed. Your heart 
is always alive, and your hand untiring. ***** 

" Some years ago, you did that for me and mine which will 
command my gratitude while I live. I needed aid to educate my 
children ; and you, in a spirit of marked generosity, came un- 
asked to my relief I need not say how deeply, how sincerely 



332 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

thankful I was, that one, upon -nhom I had no claim, should 
manifest so generous a spirit. After a ivhile, times changed 
somewhat for the better ; and, feeling that I was able to do it, I 
asked permission to restore the sum advanced, that you, to whom 
it belonged, might have the disposition of it, since it had per- 
formed with me the good that was intended. You kindly gave 
me leave to hand it over to the college, but advised me to take 
my own time, and suit my convenience. That time has now 
come ; and, as you are again extending to the college your sus- 
taining arm, and may wish to take this matter into the account, 
I herewith enclose a check for five hundred dollars, with the 
renewed thanks of myself and my wife for the great and gener- 
ous service which you have done us. We shall, in all respects, 
have profited greatly by it ; and have no wish to cancel our 
obligations by tliis act, but to recognize them in their fullest 
extent. I am, most truly and faithfully, 

" Your friend and obetlient servant, 

" JouN Davis." 

Some inquiries having been made of Mr. Lawrence 
respecting the early history of the Bunker Hill IMonu- 
ment, ho writes, on the 12th of November, in a short 
note : 

Deae Son : You may be glad to copy the twelfth section of 
my will, executed in 1833. This information is not before the 
world, but may be interesting to your children. I could have 
finished the monument, sick as I was, at any time before Edmund 
Dwight's death, by enlisting with him, who made me the oiFer, to 
jom a small number of friends (three Appletons, Eobert G. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 333 



Shaw, and us tlirec Lawrences), without saying, ' by your leave,' 
to the public." 

-p? ^v TV 'iv T? 'Tr 

" Surety-ship is a dangerous craft to embark in. Avoid it as 
you would a sail-boat with no other fastenings than mere wooden 
pegs and cobweb sails." 



CHAPTER XXXYIII. 

MR, LAWRENCE SERVES AS PRESIDENTIAL ELECTOR. — GEN. FRANK- 
LIN PIERCE. — SUDDEN DEATH. — FUNER.\L. 

In November, Robert G. Shaw, Esq., and Mr. Law- 
rence, were chosen Presidential Electors for the district 
in which tliey resided. Both, at that time, were in 
the enjoyment of their usual health, and yet both were 
removed within a few months by death. The Electoral 
College was convened in the State House at Boston, in 
December ; and Mr. Lawrence has noticed the event by 
a memorandum, endorsed upon his commission of Elec- 
tor, as follows : 

" December 1. — I have attended to the duty, and have given 
my vote to Winfield Scott for President, and William A. Gra- 
ham for Vice-President." 

He did not add, that, before leaving the State 
House, he gave the customary fee paid in such cases 
towards freeing the family of a negro from slavery. 

But little is found in the handwriting of Mr. Law- 
rence for the month of December, except his usual 
record of donations to charitable objects. He seems to 
have written but few letters, which may in part be 

331 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 335 

accounted for by having had his time much occupied 
by a most agreeable intercourse with Gen. Franklin 
Pierce, who, with his family, were his guests during a 
part of the month. That gentleman had for many 
years been on terms of intimate friendship with Mr. 
Lawrence, and had kept up a familiar correspondence 
from Washington and elsewhere, which no political 
differences had abated. He had always been a favorite ; 
and now, having been elected to the Presidential chair, 
and engaged in plans for his future administration, it 
may be imagined what interest this intercourse excited 
in Mr. Lawrence, deeply concerned as he was in every 
movement that tended to promote the political and 
moral welfare of the country. INLany excursions were 
made to the interesting spots and charitable institutions 
of Boston and its Adcinity, during this visit, which has a 
melancholy interest from the events which immediately 
followed it. On the twenty-sixth. General and Mrs. 
Pierce left Boston for their home at Concord, N. H., 
with the intention of spending a few days with their 
friends at Andover. They were accompanied by their 
only child Benjamin, a bright and promising boy, 
twelve years of age, whose melancholy death, but a 
few days afterwards, will give an interest to the follow- 
ing note, which he wrote to Mr. Lawrence in acknowl- 
edgment of a little token of remembrance : 



336 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

" Andover, Doc. 27, 1852. 

" Dear Uncle Lawrence : I admire the beautiful pencil 

you sent me, and I think I shall find it very useful. I shall 

keep it very carefully for your sake, and I hope that I may leam 

to write all the better with it. It was kind in you to write such 

a good little note, too ; and I see that being industrious while you 

were young enables you to be kind and benevolent now that you 

are old. I think that you have given me very good advice, and 

I hope I shall profit by it. So, dear uncle, with much love to 

aunt, I am 

" Your afifectionate nephew, 

"B. Pierce." 

The brief history of thi.s promi.sing boy, who exhib- 
ited a maturity and thoughtfuluess far beyond his 
years, is soon tokl. Nine days afterwards, in company 
with his father and mother, he left Andover on his 
return home. A few minutes after starting, the cars 
were precipitated down a steep bank, among the rocks, 
causing the instant death of Benjamin, and bruising 
the father and many other passengers severely. The 
accident sent a thrill of sympathy throughout the 
Union, and cast a withering blight upon the prospects 
of the bereaved parents, which, amidst all earthly 
distinctions, can never be forgotten, and which has 
perhaps rendered more irksome the great and unceasing 
responsibilities of high official station. 



'■'■Dec. 28. — I sent a large bundle of clothing materials, 
books, and other items, with sixty dollars, by steamer for Bangor, 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 337 



to Professor Pond, of Eangor Theological Seminary, for the 
students. Also gave a parcel, costing twenty-five dollars, to 

Mrs. , who is a Gi'oton girl, and now liaving twins, making 

twenty children : is very poor. 

"Dec. 30. — To Professor , by dear S., one hundj-ed 

dollars. Books and items to-day, five dollars." 

These were his hist entries. 

On the afternoon of the above date, the writer, in 
his usual walk, passed Mr. Lawrence's door with the 
intention of calling on his return, but, after proceeding 
a few steps, decided, from some unaccountable motive, 
to give up the accustomed exercise, and pass the time 
with his father. Mr. Lawrence appeared in excellent 
health and spirits ; and nearly an hour was agreeably 
spent in discussing the topics of the day. He seemed 
more than usually communicative ; and, although 
always kind and affectionate, there was, on this occa- 
sion, an unusual softness of manner, and tendei"ne.ss 
of expression, which cannot be forgotten. The last 
topic touched upon was the character of a prominent 
statesman, just deceased, and the evidence which he 
had given of preparation for an exchange of worlds. 
He spoke somewhat fully upon the nature of such pre- 
paration, and expressed a strong hope, that, in the 
present instance, the exchange had been a happy one. 

In the latter part of the evening, Mr. Lawrence 
addressed to his friend, Prof. Packard, of Eowdoin 
College, the following note, in reply to some questions 

43 



338 DIARY AND CORUESPONDENCE. 

asked by that gentleman in regard to the Bunker Hill 
Monument, of which he was preparing a history for 
publication among the records of the Maine Historical 
Society : 

" Boston, December 30, 1852, evenini'. 
" My dear Friend : Your letter of Tuesday reached me just 
before my morning excursion to Longwood to see our loved one 
there. In reply to your first query, I answer, that jMr. E. 
Everett presented a design of Bunker Hill ]Monument, which was 
very classic, and was supported by Col. Perkins and Gen. Dear- 
born, I believe, and perhaps one or two more. Young Greenough 
(Horatio), then a student of Harvard College, sent in a plan with 
an essay, that manifested extraordinary talents, and was substan- 
tially adopted, although the column was amended by the talents, 
taste, and influence of Loammi Baldwin, one of our directors. 
The discussion of the model was very interesting ; and, among 
the whole mass of plans, this of Mr. Everett and Mr. Baldwin, 
or, as I before said, a modification of Greenough's, were the only 
ones that were thought of. Mr. Everett, and those who favored 
his classic plan, were very cordial in their sujiport of the plan of 
the monument as it is, very soon after its adoption. Jlr. Ticknor 
was very active in support of the plan as adopted ; and I have a 
strong impression that young Greenough's arguments were wholly 
just, and, abating some assertions which seemed a little strong for 
a mere college-lad, were true and unexceptionable. I write from 
memory, and not from overlooking the plans carefully since the 
time they were considered. Young Greenough I felt a deep 
interest in, and advanced money to his father to allow him to go 
abroad to study, -wliich has been repaid since his father's death. 
Here I have an interesting story to tell you of this debt, which I 
wished to cancel, that the widow might receive the amount. Mr. 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 339 

Greenough was near bis end, and deeply aflfected, but fully per- 
suaded tbat. by tbe provisions of his will, Lis widow would soon 
have an ample income, and declined the offer. It bas turned out 
better than he ever anticipated. The books shall go forward, as 
you requested. All our family, ' kith and kin,' are pretty well. 
The President elect has, I think, the hardest time, being over- 
worked ; and, as we are now without any one, we shall be rejoiced 
to see you here. Pray, come. I shall write again when I send 
the •' red book ' you request. 

" AVith love to all, N. and I join; and I bid you adieu. 
"From your friend, 

" Amos Lawrence. 

" To Prof. Packard, Brunswick, Me." 

The above letter Avas folded, directed, and left upon 
his table, and doubtless contained the last words he ever 
wrote. 

After the usual family devotions, he retired at about 
ten o'clock, and, before his attendant left the room, 
asked a few questions relating to the situation of a poor 
family which he had relieved a day or two before. 
Mrs. Lawrence had been in an adjoining room, and, on 
returning, found him lying quietly, and apparently 
engaged in silent prayer. She did not, therefore, dis- 
turb him, but retired for the night without speaking. 
In less than two hours, she was awakened by one of his 
usual attacks. Remedies were applied ; but, no rally- 
ing symptoms appearing, the physician and family were 
summoned. All that medical skill could do was in 
vain ; and, at a quarter past twelve, on the last day of 



340 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

the year, he quietly breathed his hxst, without having 
awakened to consciousness after his first sleep. 

All his temporal affairs seemed to have been arranged 
in view of this event. The partnership with his brother, 
which had existed for nearly forty years, was dissolved 
in that way which lie had resolved in former years 
should alone terminate it. From various prudential 
reasons, however, he had changed his opinion, and had 
decided to withdraw from all business relations, and 
accordingly furnished the advertisement, which was to 
appear on the next day in the public prints, announcing 
his withdrawal. Four days previous, he had executed 
a codicil to his will ; and thus seemed to have settled 
his concerns with the closing year. The summons did 
not find him unprepared ; for it was such as he had 
long expected, and had alluded to many times in his 
conversation, as well as in his letters to friends. The 
plans of each day were made with reference to such a 
call. Nor can we doubt that he w^as, in the highest 
sense, prepared to exchange what he sometimes was 
permitted to call " the heaven on earth " for that higher 
heaven where so many of his most cherished objects of 
earthly affection had preceded him. On the morning 
of his death, the editor found upon his table the follow- 
ing lines, which had been copied by him a few days 
previous, and which are the more interesting from being 
a part of the same hymn containing the lines repeated 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 341 

by his wife upou her death-bed, tloirty-three years 
before : 

" Vital spark of heavenly flame, 
Quit, 0, quit this mortal frame! 
Trembling, hoping, lingering, flying, — 
O, the pain, the bliss, of dying ! 
Cease, fond nature, — cease the strife, 
And let me languish into life. 
Hark ! " 

It would almost seem that a vision of the angel- 
messenger had been afforded, and that the sound of his 
distant footseps had fallen upon his ear ; for, with the 
unfinished line, the pen thus abruptly stops. 

The funeral ceremonies were performed on Tuesday, 
the 4th of January. A prayer was first offered before 
the body was taken from the house, in the presence of 
the family and friends of the deceased, by the Rev. A. 
H. Vinton, D.D., Rector of St. Paul's Church. Public 
exercises in Brattle-street Church were then performed, 
in the presence of a crowded congregation, composed 
of the numerous friends and former associates of the 
deceased, clergymen of all denominations, and large 
numbers representing the various professions and trades 
of the community. 

The religious services were conducted by three of 
Mr. Lawrence's most intimate and valued friends, 
representing three different denominations. These 
were the Rev. Dr. Lothrop, pastor of Brattle-street 
Church ; the Rev. Dr. Hopkins, President of Williams 



342 HIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

College ; and the Rev. Dr. Sharp, pastor of the Baptist 
Society in Charles-street. A beautiful and appropriate 
hymn was sung by the members of the Lawrence Asso- 
ciation, from the Mather School, who surrounded the 
coffin, and, at the conclusion of the hymn, covered it 
with flowers. The body, followed by a large procession 
of mourning friends, was then conveyed to Mount 
Auburn, and deposited by the side of the loved ones 
who had preceded him, and under the shade of the 
" Old Oak," where may it rest until summoned to the 
presence of that Saviour whose example and precepts 
he so much loved on earth, and through whom alone he 
looked for happiness in heaven ! 



CHArTEE XXXIX. 

SKETCH OF CHARACTER BY REV. DRS. LOTHROP AND HOPKINS. 

The correspondence in the preceding pages will, 
perhaps, give a clearer view of the character of Mr. 
Lawrence than anything which can he adduced by 
others. It may not be amiss, however, to quote what 
has been written by two of his most intimate friends, 
who had the most ample means of forming a just esti- 
mate of the man, and of the motives by which he was 
actuated. Dr. Lothrop, in his sermon preached on the 
Sunday after the funeral, says : 

"I have iutimateil that Mr. Lawrence was intellectually great. 
I think he was so. By this, I do not mean he was a scholar or 
learned man, with a mind developed and disciplined by severe 
training, and enlarged and enriched by varied culture in the 
various departments of human thought and study. This, we 
know, he was not ; although he was a man of considerable read- 
ing, who loved and appreciated the best books in English liter- 
ature. But I mean that he was a man of great native vigor of 
intellect, whose mind was clear, strong, comprehensive in its 
grasp, penetrating, far-reaching in its observation, discerning and 
discriminating in its judgments, sagacious in its conclusions ; a 
mind, which, if enriched by the requisite culture, and dii'ected to 

34."! 



344 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

such oljjects, ■would have made him emiuent in any of tlie walks 
of literary or professional life, as, without that culture, it did 
make him eminent in those walks of jjractical, commercial life to 
which lie did direct it. I mention this, not to dwell upon it, but 
simply because some who have known him little, and that only 
since disease had somewhat sapped his strength, may not ilo him 
justice in this respect. Those who remember his early manhood ; 
who saw the strong, bold, and vigorous tread with which he 
walked forward to his rightful place among the merchants of the 
city ; those who remember the sagacity of his enterprises, his 
quick and accurate discernment of character, and the commanding 
influence he exercised over others ; the ease and rapidity with 
which he managed the concerns of a large commercial establish- 
ment, and decided and despatched the most important commercial 
negotiation, — these will be ready to admit that he was intellect- 
ually a strong man. To tlie last this vigor of intellect showed 
itself; if not always in his conversation, yet always in his letters, 
many of which will be found to have a force of thought, a fulness 
of wisdom and sound judgment, a terse, epigrammatic compre- 
hensiveness of expression, of which no man, however distinguished 
by his learning and scholarship, would have need to be ashamed. 
The merchants of this city have ever been distinguished, I believe, 
for their integrity and benevolence. Nowhere is wealth acquired 
by a more honest and healthy activity ; nowhere is a larger por- 
tion of it devoted to all the objects which a wise philanthropy, 
an extended patriotism, and a tender Christian sympathy, would 
foster and promote. Mr. Lawrence was conspicuous for these 
qualities. His integrity, I may venture to say, stands absolutely 
unimpeached, without spot or blemish. His history, as a mer- 
chant, from first to last, will bear the strictest scrutiny. Its 
minutest incidents, which have faded from the memory of those 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 345 

concerned; its most secret acts, those of which no human eye 
could take knowledge, — might all be brought into the light 
before us ; and like those, I trust, of many of his fraternity, they 
would seem only to illustrate the purity and integrity of his prin- 
ciples, the conscientious regard to truth and right and justice 
with which he conducted all the negotiations of business, and all 
the affairs of his life. He seemed ever to me to have a reverence 
for right, unalloyed, unfaltering, supreme ; a moral perception 
and a moral sensibility, which kejjt him from deviating a hair's 
breadth from what he saw and felt to be his duty. It was this 
that constituted the strength of his character, and was one of the 
great secrets of his success. It was this that secured him, when 
a young man, the entire confidence, and an almost unlimited 
use of capital, of some of the wealthiest and best men of that 
day. ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ 

"The prominent feature in Mr. Lawrences life and charac- 
ter, its inspiration and its guide, was religion ; religious faith, 
afiection, and hope. He loved God, and therefue he loved all 
God's creatures. He believed in Christ, as the promised Mes- 
siah and Saviour of the world : and therefore found peace and 
strength to his soul, amid all the jierils, duties, and sorrows of 

llIG ^ ^ 'I^ ^ T*? 

'■ There was nothing narrow or sectarian about ^Ir. Lawrence's 
religious opinions or feelings. He had a large, catholic spirit, 
which embraced within the arms of its love, and of its pecuniary 
bounty also when needed, all denominations of Cliristians ; and it 
is to be hoped that the influence of his example and character has 
done something, and will continue to do more, to rebuke that 
bigotry which ' makes its own light the measure of another's 
illumination.' He took no pleasure in religious disputes or dis- 
cussions. The practical in Christianity was what interested him. 
44 



346 DIARY AND CORKESPONDENCE. 

His great aim was to illustrate his faith by his daily walk, and 
authenticate his creed by a life of practical usefulness, constant 
benevolence, and cheerful piety. This aim he successfully accom- 
plished, to the conviction of persons of all creeds and of every 
name. These will all give him a name in the church universal ; 
will all admit that he was a noble specimen of a true Christian, — 
a loving and believing disciple, who had the very spirit of his 
Master. That spirit pervaded his daily life, and formed the moral 
atmosphere in which he lived and breathed. It quickened in him 
all holy, devout, and pious aifections ; gave him a profound rev- 
erence, a cheerful submission, a bright and glorious hope, — a 
hope that crowned every hour with gladness, robbed death of all 
terroi's, and, in his soul, brought heaven down to earth." 

The following extracts are taken from the sermon, 
by President Hopkins, before the students of Williams 
College, — a sermon from which extracts have been 
already made : 

" Having thus spoken of the use of his property by Mr. 
Lawrence, I observe that it was distinguished by the three 
characteristics which seem to me essential to the most perfect 
accomplishment of the ends of benevolence, and that in two of 
these he was preeminent. 

" The first of these is, that he gave the money in his life-time. 
No man, I presume, has lived on this continent, who has approxi- 
mated him in the amount thus given ; and in this course there are 
principles involved which deserve the careful attention of those 
who woul<l act conscientiously, and with the highest wisdom. 
There may doubtless be good reasons why property destined for 
benevolent uses should he retained till death, and he is justly 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 347 

honored ivlio then gives it a wise direction ; but giving thus can- 
not furnish either the same test or discipline of character, or the 
same enjoyment, nor can it always accomjDlish the same ends. By 
his course, Mr. Lawrence put his money to its true work long 
before it could have done anything on the principle of accumula- 
tion ; and to a work, too, to which it never could have been put in 
any other way. He made it sure, also, that that work should l^e 
done ; and had the pleasure of seeing its results, and of knowing 
that through it he became the object of gratitude and affection. 
So doing, he showed that he stood completely above that tendency 
to accumulate which seems to form the chief end of most success- 
ful business men : and which, unless strongly counteracted, nar- 
rows itself into avarice, as old age comes on, almost with the 
certainty of a natural law. lie did stand completely above tliis. 
No one could know him. without perceiving, that," in his giving, 
there was no remryint of grudging or reluctance ; that he gave, 
not only freely, but with gladness, as if it were the appropriate 
action of a vital energy. And in so doing, and in witnessing the 
results, and in the atmosphere of sympathy and love thus created, 
there was a test and a discipline and an enjoyment, as well as a 
benefit to others, that could have been reached in no other way. 

" The second peculiarity in the bounty of Mr. Lawrence, and 
in wliicli he was prei^'Uiinent. was the personal attention and sym- 
pathy wliieli be bestowed with it. lie had in his house a room 
where he kept stores of useful articles for distrilnition. He made 
up the bundle ; he directed the package. No detail was over- 
looked, lie remembered the children, and designated for each the 
toy, the liook. the elegant gift. lie thought of every w^ant, and 
was ingenious and happy in devising appropriate gifts. In this 
attention to the minutest token of regard, while, at the same time, 
he could give away thousands like a prince, I have known no one 



348 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

like him. And, if the gift was appropriate, the manner of giving 
was not less so. There was in this the nicest appreciation of the 
feelings of others, and an intuitive perception of delicacy and pro- 
priety. These were the characteristics that gave him a hold upon 
tlie hearts of many, and mailo his deatli really felt as that of few 
other men in Boston could have heen. In this, we find not a little 
of the utility, and much of the beauty, of charity. Even in his 
human life, man does not live by bread alone, but by sympathy 
and the play of reciprocal affection, and is often more touched by 
the kindness than by the relief Only this sympathy it is that 
can establish the right relation between the rich and the poor ; 
and the necessity for this can be superseded by no legal provision. 
This only can neutralize the repellent and aggressive tendencies 
of individuals and of cla,sses, and make society a brotherhood, 
where the vairious ine(iualities shall work out moral good, and 
where acts of nmtual kindness and helpfulness may pass and 
repass, as upon a golden chain, during a brief pilgrimage and 
scene of probation. It is a gi'eat and a good thing for a rich man 
to set the stream of charity in motion, to employ an agent, to send 
a check, to found an asylum, to endow a professorship, to open a 
fountain that shall flow for ages ; but it is as different from sym- 
pathy with present suffering, and the relief of immediate want, as 
the building of a dam to turn a factory by one great sluiceway is 
from the irrigation of the fields. By Mr. Lawrence both were 
done. 

"The third characteristic referred to of the bounty of Mr. 
Lawrence was, that he gave as a Christian man, — from a sense 
of religious obligation. Not that all his gifts had a religious 
aspect : he gave gifts of friendship and of affection. There was a 
large enclosure, where the affections walked foremost, and where, 
though they asked leave of Duty, they yet received no prompting 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 349 

from lier. Whether he always drew this line rightly : whether, 
in the ineasure and direction of his charities, he was always right ; 
whether so much of diifusion and indi\'iduality was wise, — it is 
not for me to say. Certain it is, that this form of charity holds a 
place in the church now less prominent relatively than it did in 
the early ages ; and it may be that the proportions of Christian 
character, in portions of the church, need to be remodelled and re- 
cast in this respect. These are questions for each individual. It 
is sufficient to know that Mr. Lawrence looked the great d<jctriue 
of stewardship full in the fice, and prayed earnestly over it, and 
responded to it practically, as few have done. * * * » 

" Undoubtedly, he was a man of great original powers. On this 
point, I have had but one opinion since knowing him. Ilis mind 
was not speculative, discursive, metaphysical : but, in the high 
moral qualities ; in decision and energy ; in intuitive perception, 
and sound, practical judgment ; in the sensibility and aifections, 
and in the imagination, — he was great. Like all remai'kable men 
who are not one-sided, he had large faculties, which found 
their harmony in their conflict, or rather in their balance. He 
was quick and tender in his feelings, yet firm; ardent in his affec- 
tions, yet judicious ; large in his gifts, yet discriminating ; he was 
a keen observer, yet kind in his feelings ; he had a fertile and 
shaping imagination : he built air-castles, and they vanished, and 
then he built others ; but, when he decided to build anything on 
the ground, it was well-planned and promptly finished. His tastes 
were natural and simple, his habits plain, and his feelings always 
fresh, genuine, and youthful. Not even the smell of the fire of 
prosperity had passed on him. He shunned notoriety. He had a 
strong repugnance to all affectation and pretence and misplaced 
finery. A young man with rings on his fingers had small chance 
of favor or employment from him. He was impatient of talk when 



350 DIAKY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

action was called for, and of all attempts to substitute talk for 
action. His command over the English language, especially in 
writing, indicated his power. Style is no mechanical product, 
that can be formed by rules, but is the outgrowth and image of 
the mind ; and his had often great felicity and strength. When 
he wrote under the impulse of his feelings, he seemed to impreg- 
nate the very paper, and make it redolent of them. He loved 
nature ; and, instea<l of becoming insensible to it as years came 
on. it seemed rather to open upon him like a new revelation. It 
was full of life and of teaching, and the charms of natural beauty 
were heightened by those associations which his quick imagination 
connected with its olyects and scenes. After the death of two of 
his children, he says : ' Dear S. and R. speak in words without 
sound through every breeze, and in every flower, and in the fra- 
grance of every perfume from the fields or the trees.' Years ago, 
after a long confinement, with little hope of recovery, he visited, 
when first able to get out, the Panorama of Jerusalem, then on 
exliibition in Boston, and remained there till the scene took full 
possession of his mind. Shortly after, on a fine day, he rode out 
to Brookline : and. as returning health threw over those hills a 
mantle of beauty that he had never seen before, they were imme- 
diately associated in his mind with the Panorama of Jerus;dem, 
and then with the glories of the Jerusalem above. This associa- 
tion was indissoluble, and he would take his friends out to see his 
' Mount Zion.' In 1850, he says, ' It really seems to me like the 
sides of Mount Zion, and that I can cling to them as I view 
them.' ***** 

" He was a deeply religious man. Ilis trust in God, and his 
hope of salvation through Cbi-ist, were the basis of his character. 
He l)elie\'ed in the providence of God as concerned in all events, 
and as discriniinatiu": and retributive in this world. He felt that 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 351 

he could trust God in his providence, where he could not see. 
' The events of my life,' he writes, ' have been so far ordered in a 
■vv;iy to make me feel that I know nothing at the time, except that 
a Father rules ; and his discipline, however severe, is never more 
so than is required.' He believed in the Bible, and saw rightly its 
relation to all our blessings. ' What,' he writes again, ' should 
we do, if the Bilile were not the foundation of our self-govern- 
ment? and what will become of us, when we wilfully and wickedly 
cast it behind us ? ' He reiid the Bible morning and evening in 
his family, and prayed with them ; and it may aid those who are 
acquainted with the prayers of Thornton, in forming a conception 
of his religious character, to know that he used them. Family 
religion he esteemed as above all price ; and, when he fii'St learned 
that a beloved relative had established family worship, he wept for 
joy. He distributed religious books very extensively, chiefly 
those of the American Tract Society, and of the American Sun- 
day School Union. * * * * Of creeds held in the understanding, 
but not influencing the life, he thought little ; and the tendency 
of his mind was to practical rather than doctrinal views. He 
believed in our Lord Jesus Christ as a Saviour, and trusted in him 
for salvation. He was a man of habitual prayer. The last time 
I visited him, he said to me, that he had been restless during the 
night, and that the only way in which he could ' get quieted was 
by getting near to God,' and that he went to sleep repeating a 
prayer. During the same visit, lie spoke strongly of his readiness, 
and even of his desire, to depart. He viewed death with tranquillity 
and liope and preparation, for it was haliitual with him. AVhat 
need I say more ? At midnight the sunmions came, and his work 
was done." 



CHAPTER XL. 

CONCLUSION. 

Mr. Lawrence was of about the medium height, and, 
until reduced by sickness, was erect in person, and 
actiA'e and vigorous in his movements. The expression 
of his countenance was miki and cheerful, partaking of 
that benevolent cast which one would have been led to 
expect from the tenor of his daily life. Ilis ailections 
were warm, and his feelings quick and ardent. His 
temperament was of a nervous character, thereby in- 
clining him to impatience. "With this defect he had to 
struggle much in early life. It is related of him, that 
he once, by some hasty reply, wounded the sensitive 
feelings of a cherished sister, who afterwards died ; and 
so much did he regret his impatience, that he made a 
resolution to persevere in his efforts until he had con- 
(juered the fault. A great change was soon remarked 
in him in this respect ; so much so, that a relative, who 
passed several months under his roof during his early 
married life, was surprised at not seeing the least evi- 
dence of this tendency. During his latter years, when 
weakened by disease, and when his nervous system had 
been shattered by his violent and peculiar attacks of 

352 



DIARV AND CORRESPONDENCE. 353 

illness, he had more difficulty in controlling his feelings 
and expressions. On the second, sober thought, how- 
ever, no one could have been more ready to confess 
the fault, and to make such reparation as the case 
demanded. 

His daily actions were guided by the most exalted 
sense of right and wrong ; and in his strict sense of 
justice, Aristides himself could not surpass him. He 
was a living example of a successful merchant, who had, 
from the earliest period of his business career, risen 
above all artifice, and had never been willing to turn to 
his own advantage the ignorance or misfortune of others. 
He demonstrated in his own case the possibility of suc- 
cess, while practising the highest standard of moral 
obligation. He had ever commanded the confidence of 
those around him. When an apprentice in his native 
town, many of his customers relied upon his judgment 
rather than their own. He never deceived them, and 
early adopted as his rule of life, to do to others as he 
would have them do to him. Thus he stood high in 
the confidence, as well as in the estimation, of his neigh- 
bors. What " Amos " said was right, and no one could 
gainsay. 

If any one thing was, more than another, the means 
of promoting his success in life, we should say it was 
this faculty of commanding the confidence of others. 
To tliis can be traced the prosperity of his earliest busi- 
ness years ; and, as his sphere enlarged, and his financial 

45 



354 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

operations were extended, tlie same feeling of confidence 
gave Liui the unlimited command of the means of some 
of the wealthiest capitalists in New England, who, 
through the most critical seasons in the mercantile 
world, placed implicit confidence in the house of which 
he was the senior partner. 

Mr. Lawrence had no fluency in conversation. His 
mind Avas ever active ; but the volume of thought fouud 
no coiTesponding channel of utterance. The very num- 
ber of ideas seemed to impede the power of expression. 

Had his talents been devoted to literary or scientific 
pursuits, he would have earned distinction by his pen. 
His mind was not of that logical cast, which, from 
patient reasoning, can deduce effects from a succession 
of causes ; but arrived at its conclusions by a kind of 
intuition, somewhat like those rare instances of mathe- 
maticians who solve a difficult problem, and yet can 
give no account of the mental process by which the 
solution has been reached. 

As a husband and father, he was ever kind and 
affectionate. He w^as domestic in his tastes, and found 
his greatest enjoyment in his home. Here he was 
eminently favored, and ever found the warmest sympa- 
thy, and that considerate care and kindness so necessary 
in latter years to his feeble health. No one who has 
read the preceding correspondence can have failed to 
see the interest which he ever took in all that concerned 
the welfare of those whom Providence had committed 



DIAKY AXD CORRESPONDENCE. 855 

to his keeping. His letters to his children would fill 
many volumes, and are in themselves an enduring testi- 
mony to his fidelity and watchful care during a long 
series of years. His motto was, "Line upon line, pre- 
cept upon precept;" and thus his constant aim was to 
impress upon their minds the great principles of religion 
and morality. No parent could be more indulgent when 
such indulgence was consistent with the true welfare of 
his children, or more resolute in denying what was 
hurtful. Their present happiness was a great object ; 
but his desire for their ultimate good was still greater. 

As a friend, he was most faithful and sympathizing ; 
and many now living can testify to the value of his 
friendship. Few, perhaps, have had more friends. 
Their affection for him was not founded so much upon 
gratitude for his constantly recurring favors, as upon 
the wai"m sympathy and affection ivith which his heart 
was filled toward them and theirs. 

As a citizen, his views wei'e comprehensive, and 
were bounded by no lines of sectional or party feeling. 
He was most deeply interested in all that concerned the 
honor and prosperity of his country, and keenly sensi- 
tive to the injury inflicted by such measures as tended 
to depreciate her standing in the estimation of other 
nations, or of good men among her own citizens. He 
was a true patriot, and had adopted the views and aims 
of the best men of the republic in former days, while 
he viewed with distrust many of the popular movements 



356 DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

of more modern times. From his father he had inher- 
ited the most profound veneration for Gen. Washington, 
and faith in his public policy ; while the political prin- 
ciples of Alexander Hamilton and John Jay were those 
alone by which he thought the permanent happiness 
and prosperity of the country could be secured. 

As a Christian, he endeavored to walk in the foot- 
steps of his Master. He had no taste I'or the discussion 
of those minor points of doctrine upon which good men 
so often differ, but embraced with all his heart the 
revealed truths of the Gospel, which the great body of 
Christians can unite in upholding. He sought those 
fields of labor where all can meet, rather than those 
which are hedged in by the dividing lines of sect and 
party. 

He reverenced the Bible, and, from the first chapter 
of the Old Testament to the last chapter of the New, 
received it as the inspired Word of God. This was his 
sheet-anchor ; and to doubt was, in his view, to leave 
a safe and peaceful haven, to embark upon an unknown 
ocean of danger and uncertainty. 

Religion was for him a practical thing for every-day 
use, consisting not so much in frames and emotions as 
in the steady and persevering performance of the daily 
duties of life. His view of duty did not limit Mm to 
the common obligations of morality, but included the 
highest sense of duty towards God ; or, as he has 
expressed it in one of his early letters, " to be a moral 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 357 

man merely, is not to be a Christian." He was an 
active helper in all that tended to promote the cavise 
of Christianity among nations, as well as to promote 
spiritual progress among individuals. The Christian 
banner, in liis view, covered many denominations ; 
and, with this belief, his charities were directed to the 
building up of institutions under the influence of the 
various sects differing from that under which he himself 
was classed. 

What has been said of John Thornton might be 
applied to him : 

" He was a merchant renowned in his generation for a muni- 
ficence more than jorincely. He was one of those rare men in 
whom the desire to relieve distress assumes the form of a master- 
passion. Conscious of no aims but such as may invite the scrutiny 
of God and man. he pursued them after his own fearless fashion, 
yielding to every honest impulse, choosing his associates in scorn 
of mere worldly precepts, and worshipping with any fellow- 
Christian whose heart beat in unison with his own, however 
inharmonious might be some of the articles of their respective 
creeds. His benevolence was as unsectarian as his general habits ; 
and he stood ready to assist a beneficent design in every party, 
but would be the creature of none. He not only gave largely, 
but be gave wisely. He kept a regular account (not for ostenta- 
tion, or the gratification of vanity, but for method) of every pound 
he gave. With him, his givings were made a matter of business, 
a;S Cowper says, in an ' Elegy ' he wrote upon him, — 

' Thou hadst an industry in doing good, 
Restless as his who toils and sweats for food. ' " 



358 DIARY AND CORUESPONDEXCE. 

Those who were not acquainted with Mr. Lawrence 
might saiDpose that his long continued ill-health, extend- 
ing through a j)eriod of twenty-one years, permitted the 
formation of a character Avhich few could attain who 
should not he called upon to pass through a similar 
discipline. 

That the isolation from the business-world, and 
freedom from the cares and struggles of active life, 
to which most men are subjected, tended to give 
him a more just and dispassionate view of his rela- 
tions to God, as well as to his fellow-men, cannot be 
doubted. 

The peculiar elevation and spirituality of mind which 
he acquired must not, however, be looked upon as the 
hot-bed growth of the invalid's chamber ; but rather as 
the gradual development of a character whoso germ was 
planted far back in the years of childhood. The prin- 
ciples of religion and truth which were inculcated by a 
faithful and sensible mother upon the heart of the child, 
shone forth in all the events which marked the life of 
the future man. 

Of Mr. Lawrence's religious opinions respecting 
those doctrinal points upon which Christians are divi- 
ded, the writer will not speak ; though, from repeated 
conversations with his father on the subject, in the 
hours of health as well as of sickness, he might con- 
sistently do so. Rather than make assertions which 
might lead to discussion, it is more grateful to his feel- 



DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE. 35'J 

ings to leave the subject to the unbiassed judgment of 
those who shall read the preceding correspondence. 

Let it rather be the aim of those who loved and hon- 
ored him in life to imitate his example, now that he is 
dead. They may rejoice that they were permitted to 
claim as a relative, and to have daily intercourse with, 
one who has exhibited, in such an abundant degree, 
those fruits which are the truest and best evidence of a 
genuine faith. 

In completing this volume, the editor feels that he 
has fulfilled a sacred trust ; and his great regret is, that 
the work could not have been undertaken by some one 
more fitted, by his qualifications and past experience, 
to do justice to the subject. For reasons given in the 
Preface, this could not be ; and it is, therefore, with 
great diffidence that these pages are submitted as a 
memorial of one whose life and character deserve more 
than a passing record. 

If, however, what has been done shall be the means 
of directing the attention of those for whom the volume 
has been prepared to the consideration of the precepts 
here recorded ; and, above all, if those precepts shall 
be the means of influencing them for good in their 
future course in life, — the efibrt will not have been 
in vain. 



I Is D E X . 



Abstinence, total, from tobacco and 
intoxicating drinks, by Mr. 

Lawrence, ,25 

Arcounts, benefit of keeping, illustrated, 86 

Adams, Amos, 4-i 

Adams, Samuel, 1-tO 

Advice, letters of, to Abbott Lawrence, 

48—53 
Amherst College, effort of Mr. Law- 
rence in behalf of, 2i?> 

Amin Bey, letter to, from Mr. Lawrence, 285 
Anatomy, views of Mr. Lawrence re- 
specting the dissection of hmnan 

bodies, 218 

Andre, Major, 217 

Appleton, Jesse, 190 

Appleton, Mrs., death of, 190 

Athenjcum, in Boston, Mr. Lawrence's 

plans for benefit of, 200 

Baldwin, Loammi, 338 

Baltimore, derangement of bu.sines.s in, 73 
Bangor Theological Seminary, dona- 
tion by Mr. Lawrence to, , , , 310 
donation for students in, .... 337 
Banks, suspension of in 1837, .... 141 
Bible, Mr. Lawrence's estimate of the, 257 
Birth-place, attachment to expressed 

by Mr. Lawrence, 151 

of Mr. Lawrence, engraving of, . 151 
Elagden, George W., note from, re- 
specting Ilev. Dr. , of Scot- 
land, 313 

letter from Mr. Lawrence to, . . 316 

Blake, George, 84 

46 



Bondsmen, advice respecting fathers 

becom i ng, 37 

Book-keeping by double entry, adopt- 
ed by Mr. Lawrence, 01 

Boston, religious controversy in, . . . 55 
Mr. Lawrence elected representa- 
tive of, 77 

wooden buildings in, 78 

post-office, dead letters from, , . 154 

Bowdoiu College, donation by Mrs. 

Lawrence to, 244 

Brattle-street Church, Mr. Lawrence's 

connection witb, 184 

Brazer, James, 22, 221 

his store described, 23 

Bridgman, Laura, 235 

Briggs, George N., 214,281 

presentation of a cane to, by Mr. 
Lawrence, 227 

Brooks, Peter C, death and character of, 263 

Buckminster, J, S., remains of re- 
moved to Mount Auburn by Mr. 
Lawrence, 175 

Bunker Hill, desire of Mr. Lawrence to 
retain for posterity the battle- 
field, oa 

Bunker Hill Monument, Mr. Law- 
rence's interest in, 84 

objection to a lottery for, . . , , 01 

completion of, 109 

Mr. Lawrence's agency in securing 

the completion of, ... 170 — 174 
note from Mr. Lawrence respect- 
ing early history of, 332 



362 



INDEX. 



Bunker Hill Monument, history cS the 

plan of, 338 

Bm-ial-placcf, IVIr. Lawrence's views 

respcctiug, 129 

Business, seci'ctof Mr. Lawrence's suc- 
cess in, 145 

Buxton, Lady, letter from, to Mr. 

Lawrence, 298 

letter from, to Mr. Lawrence, . . 3'2-t 
Buxton, Sii- Thomas FowcU, .... 298 

Cabot, Samuel, 2U8 

Cambridge Theologieal School, views 

respecting, 103 

Canada, journey of Mr. Lawrence to, . 89 

Canadian Boat-song, 2GI 

Caufield, Mr., 38 

Carroll, Charles, 2TG 

Caswell, Oliver, 235 

Chaplin, Daniel, IS 

Chapman, Jonathan, 192 

Charities, memorandum of, . . . 92 — 95 

proportion of, in 1835, 137 

money for, 178 

*' odds and ends" for, . . 18G— 187 
correction of a public statement 

respecting Mr. Lawrence's, . . 108 
amount expended during ten years 

in, 311 

total amount e.xpended in, . . 312 
Charity, systematic, inculcated by Mr. 

Lawrence, 118 

Children, fondness of I\lr. Lawrence 

for, 225— 22G 

hospital for, founded by Mr. Law- 
rence, 230—233 

Christ, object of his death, 2GG 

Christmas, Mr. Lawrence's view of, . . 91 
Cobb, Gershom, introduces book-keep- 
ing by double entry, 61 

Codman, Dr., 253 

Colebrooke, Lady, 217 

death of, 3Ul 

Colebrooke, Sir William, letter to, from 

Mr. Lawrence, 240 

letter from Mr. Lawrence to, . . 304 
Colonization of Africa, aided by Mr. 

Lawrence, 209, 318 

Concord, Mr. Lawi'cnce's account of 

the fight in 1775 at, . . . 215—217 



Controversy, religious, in Boston, . . 55 
Copartnership, offer of Amos Lawi-ence 
to dissolve, — declined by Ab- 
bott Lawrence, 47 

Copartnership of A. & A. Lawrence 

dissolved by death, 340 

Cornhill-stroet, store of Mr. Lawrence 

in, 29 

Credit system, Mr. Lawrence's view of, 35 
Cresson, Elliott, letter to, from Mr. 

Lawrence, 299 

Darley, Mrs., ;;j 

Darracott, George, 172 

Davis, John, loan of $500 by Mr. 

Lawrence to, 330 

letter from, to Mr. Lawrence, . . 330 

Dearborn, H. A. S., 84, 338 

Debts, Mr. Lawrence's promptness in 

paying, 31 

Dexter, Franklin, estimate of his argu- 
ment on the fugitive slave law, 287 

Dexter, Madam, 75 

Diet of Mr. Lawrence, 123, 326 

table of, kept by Mr. Lawi'ence, . 124 
Dorchester Heights, relicctions on, . . 140 
Drinking habits in Mr. Lawrence's 

eai'ly days, 23 

Dwight, Edmund, 332 

Dwight, Louis, 308 

testimony of Mr. Lawrence re- 
specting, 219 

Ellis, Judge, 77 

Ellis, Mrs. Nancy, marriage of Mr. 

Lawrence to, 77 

Epicureanism, Mr. Lawrence's notion 

of, 124 

European fashions, introduction of 

discountenanced, 90 

Everett, Edward, 172, 338 

Expenditures, by Mr. LawTonee, in 

1849, 278 

from 1842 to 1852, 311 

Fac-simile of Mr. Lawrence's hand- 
writing, 248 

Family worship, Mr. Lawrence's re- 
marks on, 150 

Farwcll, Captain, 17, 301 

Fillmore, Millard, 2JG 

Foreign gold, exchange of negotiated, 75 



INDEX . 



363 



Fraternal affection, example of, . . . 147 
Freuch Kevolution of 18:10, Mr. Law- 
rence's sympathy with, .... 101 
Fugitive slave law, Mr. Lawrence's 

opinion of the, 2S7 

Funeral ceremonies at the death of 

Amos Lawi-enco, . . , . ;J41, 342 

Gannett, Ezra S., letter to, 45 

Gannett, Caleb, 4o 

Gannett, Mrs., hymn for her little boy by, 40 

Goddard, N., 70 

Grangei-^s Coffee House, 38 

Gray, Mrs. Martha, present from ^Ir. 

Lawrence to, 214 

Gray, Robert, 214 

Green, Wm. L., death of, 201 

Greenough, Horatio, 33S 

Greenwood, Rev. I)r., 123 

Groton, scenery in, ]i')2, 1j3 

Groton Academy, donations of i\Ir. 

Lawi"ence to, preamble of the 

deed, 221 

amount of donations to, by Mr. 

Lawi-ence, 222 

donations of $45,000 by William 

Lawrence to, 222 

extract from address at jubilee of, 223 
Gui'ncy, Hannah (see Buxton, Lady), 2U'J 
Haddock, Charles B., letter from Mr. 

Lawrence to, 305 

Hallock, Rev. Mr., 271) 

Hamilton, James, letters from Mr. 

Lawrence to, ... . 200, 279, 322 
letter from, to jMr. La^vi-cnce, , . 2*J3 

Hancock, .John, 140 

Harris, Colonel, 2l8 

Han'ard College, donation of S5O,000 

by Abbott Lawrence to, ... 244 
Heaven, reiinion of friends in, ... 157 
Hillsborough Bank, iMr. La^vrence's 

draft on for specie, , . . . 30, 37 

Hone, Isaac, 70 

Hone, Philip, 70 

Hopkins, Mark, President of Williams 

College, 341 

letters to, from Mr. Lawrence, 124, 

183, 213, 214, 255, 257, 258, 

250, 205, 272, 280, 285, 292 

lectures m Boston, 182 



Hopkins, JIark, extract from his ser- 
mon on death of Mr. Lawrence, 287 
peculiarities of Air. Lawrence's 
bounty sketched by, . , 340 — 30D 

Howe, Dr., 235 

Hubbard, Judge, 253 

Hubbart, Tuthill, 154 

Hulsemanu, Chevalier, interview of 

Mr. La^vi'ence with, 158 

Immigration from Europe, Mr. Law- 
rence's view of, 'J.'>>>, 270 

Income, net, of Mr. Lawrence in the 

first two years, 30 

practice of spending it, adopted 

by Mr. Lawrence, 203 

Intoxicating liquors, total abstinence 

from, by Mr. Lawrence, ... 25 
Ireland, Mr. Lawrence's contributions 

to the famished in, . . .230, 238 
Johnson School, donation to, by Mr. 

Lawi'ence, 224 

Kast, Dr., 302 

Kent, Chancellor, 70 

ride with — character of, .... 158 
Kenyon College, aid to by 3Ir. Lawrence, 177 
Lafayette, General, Jlr. Lawrence's 

opinion of, 84 

message to, 90 

Lothrop, Samuel K., . 122, 138, 175, 342 
extract from his sermon on the 

death of Mr. Lawrence, . . . 185 
sketch of character of Mr. Law- 
rence by, 343—346 

Lawrence, Abbott, 30, 131, 13S 

letters to, 48, 49, 51, 52, 55, 56, 72, 
73, 189, 244, 2C0, 207 
becomes partner with Amos, . . 3S 
character as an apprentice, ... 38 
declines otFer to dissolve copart- 
nership, 47 

sails for Europe, 4S 

his dispatch of business, .... 52 
his military service in the last 

war with Great Britain, , 50, 295 
donation of $50,000 to Harvard 

College, 244 

candidate for the Vice-Presidency, 256 
tendered the office of Secretary 
of the Navy, 206 



364 



INDEX 



Lawrence, Abbott, appointed Minister 

to the Coiut of St. Jaiues, , . 269 

his popularity in (Jrcat Britain, . 295 

lilveness of, 295 

Lawrence, Mrs. Abbott, 2S0 

Lawrence, Ainos, when ami where born, 15 

ancestry of, . , 15 

early instruction of, 20 

his mechanical skill in boyhood, . 20 

anecdote of his school-days, ... 22 

enters Groton Academy, .... 22 

becomes a merchant's clerk, ... 22 
adopts the principle and practice 

of total abstinence, 24 

■wounded by a gunshot, 20 

apprenticeship terminated, . , , 28 

accepts a clerkship in Boston, . , 29 

commences business in Boston, . 29 

his boarding-house rule, , , , , 30 

his promptness in paying bills, , 31 

motive for daily study, 32 

his remarks on letter-writing, . , 32 
his distinction between morality 

and religion, 34 

his mercantile princi[)les, . , , . 35 

view of the credit system, . , . 35 

net income of first two years, , , 3G 
advice against parents becoming 

bondsmen for their sons, ... 37 

his opinion of the theatre, . . • 39 
assists to estublish his brother 

AVilliam in business, 39 

flying visits to Grotuu, 40 

alarming illness, 40 

engagement of marriage, .... 43 

marriage, 40 

o9er to dissolve copartnership de- 
clined, 47 

letter on the death of his sister, , 54 
letter on the birth of his daugh- 
ter, 57 

recommends marriage, 57 

domestic attachment-s, 00 

adoption of book-keeping by 

double entry 01 

leniency to unfortunate debtors, , 01 

second alarming illness, .... 02 
resignation in prospect of his 

wife's death, 04 



Lawrence, Amos, tour through the jyiid- 

dle States, 08 

appreciation of the right of suffrage, 70 
delegate to assist in settlement of 

Jared Sparks, 71 

becomes an inmate of his broth- 
er's family, 74 

negotiates an exchange of foreign 

gold, 75 

narrow escape fi'om shipwreck, . 7.) 

second marriage of, 77 

resumes housekeeping, .... 77 
representative in the Legislature, 77 
letter to Mr. Wolcott respecting 

his son, 73 

becomes a manufacturer, .... 79 
curtailment of his business, , , , SI 
extent of his correspondence, . . b3 

opinion of Lafayette, 84 

interest in Bunker Hill Monument, 84 

journey to Canada, 89 

objection to Em'opean fashions, . 90 
objeeti<m to a lottery fur liunker 

Hill Monmnent, 91 

presentation of plate to Daniel 

Webster, 102, 103 

dangerous illness of, 105 

feelings in sickness, . 100, 107, 111 
visit to New Hampshire, .... 109 
his life in a sick ebambcr, . . . 112 
his submission under divine chas- 
tisements, 112 — 114 

inculcates systematic charity, . . 118 

secret of his success, 118 

exercise on horseback, 122 

his diet, 123 

improvement of health, .... 125 
avoids the appearance of e^il, , ,126 
his views of burial-places, . , . 129 
advice about selecting a wife, . .130 
advice to his daughter, . , . 131, 132 
gratitude towards his mother, . .135 

visit to 'Washington, 138 

aversion to matrimonial specula- 
tions, 138 

estimate of Congressional ilobates, 139 
visit to Rainsford Island, .... 139 
reflections on completing tliirty 
yeai-s of business, 141 



INDEX. 



365 



Lawrence, Amos, pecuniary condition, 

January 1st, 1S3S, }42 

habits of promptness, 144 

prospects on December 31st, 1838, 146 
reflections on the death of his 

brother, 14'J 

advocates family worship, . , . loO 
engraving of his birth-place, . . 151 
character in the bestowal of gifts, lo3 
enjoyment of natural scenery, 

1 j.3, IdG 
belief in reunion of friends here- 
after, 157 

annoyances arising from his rep- 
utation for benevolence, . . . 150 

his religious belief, IGO 

interest in a young colored law- 
yer, 105 — G 

reflections on his fifty-eighth 

birth-day, Itu 

his agency in securing comple- 
tion of Bunker Hill Monu- 
ment, 17U— 174 

poetical toast to, 174 

renders aid to Kenyon College, , 177 
acquaintance with Pres. Hopkins, 182 
presents sent to President Hop- 
kins, 1S3 — 1 

his aversion to public commenda- 
tion of himself, 18'J, 229 

advice respecting his grandchil- 

di-en, 101 

opposes annexation of Texas, . , l'J2 
joy at birth of twin grand- 
daughters, 193 

letter on death uf his daughter, 

l!l4_lyG 
sentiments in view of his pros- 
perity, 197 

his view of keeping the Sabbath, 202 
offer of his remains fur the dissect- 
ing-room, 218 

his interest in the Johnson School, 224 

fondness for children, 226 

provides a hospital fur sick chil- 
dren, 230 

his gratitude for prosperity, . . . 234 
contributes to the famished in 
Ireland, 230 



Lawrence, Amos, his application in 

behalf of Amherst College, . . 242 
congratulates Abbott Lawrence 
on his donation to Harvard 

College, 244 

his attendance at church 246 

his exactness in business, .... 247 
kindness tu an old debtor, . . , 248 
fac-simile of his hand-wnting, . 248 
sentiments respecting a religious 

awakening in college, . . 255, 312 
objects to his brother's taking 
political office, . 256—257, 258, 266 

estimate of the Bible, 257 

prefers Gen. Taylor for President, 258 
treatment of an apjilicaut for aid, 260 
joy at a revival of religion among 

Unitarians, 267 

interview with Father Mathew, . 270 
adds a codicil to his will, . . . .271 

illness, 272 

desire for death, 272 

keeps Christmas with children, . 277 

circulates Dr. Hamilton's works, 279, 

291, 292, 294 

lameness, 281 

attentions to children, 292 

circulates Buxton's Life, .... 298 
cancels a note for $500 against a 

clergyman, 300 

interest in Wabash College, . . . 309 
controversy with a Scotch clergy- 
man, 313 — 315 

his ground of religious hope, . . 310 
circulates Uncle Tob3-''s Stories on 

Tobacco, 319 

his diet, 326 

prefers Scott for President, . . .327 
solicits aid for Williams College, 

from Jonathan Phillips, . . . 328 
relieves the straitened cii-cum- 

stanccs of Gov. Davis, .... 330 
chosen presidential elector, . . . 333 
votes for Scott and Graham, . , 334 
intercoui-se with Fi'ankliu Pierce, 335 

his last writing, 339 

death of, 340 

funeral ceremonies, .... 341, 342 
sketches of his character, .... 343 



366 



INDEX, 



Lawrence, Amos, personal appearance, 352 
character of Johji Thornton ap- 
plied to, 337 

general character, .... 352 — 3 JO 

Lawrence, Amos A., 288 

Lawrence, Arthur, 235 

Lawrence, John, 15 

Lawrence, Luther, value of his prtiperty, 30 
Speaker of House of Representa- 
tives, US 

Mayor of Lowell, 148 

death of, M8, U'J 

Lawrence, Robert, illness of, .... 205 
letters of JMr. Lawrence respect- 
ing, 2U(i— 210 

Lawrence, Samuel, Sen., 30 

account of, Hi 

sketch of his military career, . 17, IS 
La'vn-ence, Samuel, presentation of a 

gold box to, by Mr. Lawrence, 235 
Lawrence, Mrs. Sarah, illness of, . . 62 

I tf.T to her husband, 65 

her condition described by Mr. 

Lawrence, 64 

death of, 65 

her death-bed scene described, 65 — 6 
Lawrence, Mrs. Susanna, character of, 10 

death of, 100 

Lawrence, William, 30, 252 

commences business in Boston, . 39 
donations of $-45,000 to Groton 

Academy by, 222 

death and character of, . 261, 262 
Lawrence Association, in the Mather 

School, note to, 237 

contributions for Ireland by, . . 238 
presentation of a silver cup to 

Mr. Lawrence by, 277 

hymn sung at funeral of Mr. 

Lawrence by, 342 

Letsom, Dr. C, 302 

Letters from Amos Lawrence, .... 47 

to a friend, 17, 57, 70, 73, 126, 130, 

157, 186, 187, 190, 201, 215, 

245, 246, 252, 202, 267, 283 

to his son, 20, 30, 85, 99, 100, 101, 

112, 114, 115, 124, 152, 190, 

104, 200, 205, 206, 207, 332 

to a college student, 24, 25 



Letters to Gen. Henry ^V^liting, . 30, 273, 

276 

to a sister, 32, 33, 42, 08, 71, 73, 130, 

166, 145 

to Dr. Gannett, 45 

to Abbott Lawrence, 48, 49, 51, 52, 
55, 56, 72, 73, 189, 244, 26G, 267 

to his wife, 52, 63, 126 

to a brother, 54, 68 

to his mother-in-law, 63 

to his sister-in-law, . , . .69,112 

to Frederic AVolcott, 78 

to his eldest son, abroad, 83, 87, 90, 

91, 96, 08, 103, 106 

to his second son, at Ajidovcr, 8G, 117, 

118, 125 

to Daniel Webster, 97, 102 

to his mother, 106, 107, 109, ilO, 134, 

141 

to his daughter, 119, 127, 129, 131, 

133, 150, 152 

to Iiis youngest son, 143 

to his sisters, 149, 151 

to a connection, 149 

to his second son, in Europe, . . 154 
to Kev. Charles Mason, . . . .155 
to Rev. Robert TurubuU, D.D., . 160 
to Hon. Robert C. Winthrop, . . 165 

to Genei-al , It-S 

to Mr. Parker (a partner), . 177, 204 
to the Mechanic Apprentices' Li- 
brary Association, ISl 

to President Hopkins, 183, 213, 214, 

255, 257, 258, 259, 265, 272, 

280, 285, 292 

to his pai-tners, 190, 245 

to his children in France, .... 196 

to his giandson, 209 

to R. G. Parker, -24, 229 

to Gov. Briggs, 227 

to Alexander S. McKenzie, , . . 234 
to J. A. Stearns, for Lawrence 

Association, 237 

to Madam Prescott, 239 

to Sir Wm. Colebrooke, . . 240, 304 

to a wealthy bachelor, 242 

to Prof. Packard, 243, 338 

to Mr. G , 251 

to Mr. and Mrs. Green, .... 252 



INDEX. 



567 



Letters, to a physician, 253 

to a newspaper editor, 257 

to Rev. James Ilamiltuu, D.D., 2Ui), 
271), 'l:U, 21)1), 322 

to his sons, 272 

to Robert Barnwell Khett, . . .274 
to a country clergjiiian, .... 2S0 

to an aged clergyman, 202 

to Elliott Cresson, 299 

to Lady Buxton, 300 

to a lady in Philadelphia, . . .301 
to Charles B. Haddock, .... 305 

to Rev. Dr. Scoresby, 307 

to Rev. Geo. W. Blagdcn, D.B., . 316 
to a friend in South Carolina, . . 317 

to Benjamin Seaver, 320 

to a lady in Florida, 326 

to Jonathan Phillips, 327 

Levelling, Judge Story'.s maxim of, . 2GG 
Loan of money to Mr. Laivrence by 

his father, 36 

Lowell, Charles, letter to i\Ir. Law- 
rence from, 321 

Lowell, John, 78 

Lunatic Asylum, plan for the new, . . 308 
Manufactures, engagement of Mr. 

Lawrence in, 79 

largeness of his interest in, . . . 104 

fluctuations in, 236 

views of Mr. Lawrence respect- 
ing coarse and fine, 275 

Marriage of Amos La^nx'uce, .... 40 

Mason, Charles, 193 

letter from Mr. La^vix-ncc to, . . 155 

Mason, Jeremiah, 109, 117 

remarks of, on Rev. Dr. 's 

lectures, 219, 220 

death and character of, . . 2G1, 262 
Mason, Mrs. Susan, Mr. Lawi'enco's 

letter on the death of, . . 194—196 
Massachusetts Greneral Hospital, place 
of Trustee resigned by Mr. 

Lawrence, 116 

Mather School, character of, ... . 276 

Mathcw, Father, 270 

Matnnionial speculatiuns, aversion of 

Mr. Lawi'ence to, 138 

Maxims of business — speculation 

condemned, 72 



Mcllvaine, Charles P., letter from, to 

Mr. Lawrence, 177 

McKenzie, Alexander S., letter t", 

from JMr. Lawi'ence, 234 

present of a cane to Mr. Law- 
rence from, '-(.0 

death of, 2ij1 

Means, James, extract from address 
at jubilee of Groton Academy, 

by, 223 

Means, Robert, 77 

Mercantile principles adopted by I\lr. 

Lawrence, 35 

" Milo," arrival of ship, 52 

Money, advice about spending, , . . 113 
Morality and religion, Mr. Law- 
rence's distinction between, . . 34 
Mortgage of his father's farm, . . . 3G 
Mount Auburn, interest taken in, by 

Mr. Lawrence, 175 

National character, reflections upon, 

133, 134 
Native Americans, Mr. Lawience's 

^new of, 199 

Natural History Society, donation to, 

by Mr. Lawrence, 231 

Old Ladies' Home, donation to, by Mr. 

Lawrence, 321 

" Old Oak," in Mount Auburn, . 207, 20S 

Paine, Robert Ti-eat, 38 

Parker, C. II., letter to, 177 

Parker, Daniel P., 208 

Parker, R. G., letter from to Mr. Law- 
rence, 225 

Parker, Su.'^anna, 16 

Parkman, Messrs., 37 

Percy, Lord, 217 

Perkins, Tliomas H., 3;i8 

Pestilence, Dr. Sbattuck's account of 

the, 40—42 

Phelps, Mrs., 325 

Phillips, Jonathan, letter from I\Ir. 
Lawrence to, respecting aid to 

Williiuus College, 327 

donation from, to AVilliams Col- 
lege, 229 

Pierce, Benjamin, son of President 
Pierce, note from, to Mr. Law- 
rence, 336 



368 



IN I^EX. 



Pierce, Benjamin, sudden death of, . 33G 
Pierce, Franklin, character of, , 318, 32G 
his intercourse with Mr. Lawrence, 335 
Pitcairn, Major, account of his death, 302 
removal of his remains to Eng- 
land, 303 

Pitcairn, William, 302 

Pond, Rev. Dr., 310 

Prayer adopted bj I\lr. Lawrence, , , 248 

Prescott, General, 17 

Madam, note from Mr. Lawrence 

to, 239 

her views on the comforts of old 

age, 239 

Presidential Elector, Mr. Lawrence 

chosen in 1852, 334 

Prince, Martial, 2GS 

Property, memorandum-book of Mr. 

Lawrence respecting his, ... SO 

Prudhoe, Lord, 217 

Rainsford Island, visit to, and descrip- 
tion of scenery, 139 

Religion. (See Morality.) 

its cultivation urged upon his 

daughter, 119—121 

Representative, Mr. Lawrence elected, 77 
Richards, Giles, his card manufactory, 44 
Richards, Sarah, Mr. Lawrence's en- 
gagement of marriage with, . 43 

Richardson, Captain, 22 

Sabbath, Mr. Lawrence's view of 

keeping the, 202 

Savings Institution. (See Athemvum.) 
Scenery, Mr. Lawrence's enjoyment 

of, 155, 15G 

Scoresby, TTm., letter from Mr. Law- 
rence to, 307 

Sea-serpent seen at Hampton Beach in 
1830, Mr. Lawrence's belief in 

the, 100 

Mr. Lawrence's belief in the 

existence of the, 2GS 

Sectarianism, Mr. Lawrence's freedom 

from, ICl 

Sharp, Daniel, 253, 342 

letters from, to Mr. Lawrence, . 176, 
203, 282 
Shattuck, George C, his account of 

the New England pestilence, 40 — 42 



Shaw, Roberta., 333,334 

Shipwreck, narrow escape of Mr. 

Lawrence from, 75 

Slavery, views of Mr. Lawrence on 

questions of, 275 

view of its tendencies, 318 

contribution for freeing a negro 

from, 334 

South Carolina, manufactures in, en- 
couraged by Mr. Lawrence, , , 275 
Sparks, Jared, Mr. Lawrence a dele- 
gate to assist in the settlement of, 71 

Story, Joseph, 169 

letter from, to Mr. Lawrence, 179, 180 
his maxim of " levelling," . . . 2CG 

Stone, John S., l'J3 

letter from to i\Ir. Lawrence, . 1(12 

Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 325 

Strachan, Lady, 237 

Stuart, Moses, letter of thanks from, . 2U3 

Sullivan, "William, .84 

Tarbell, Thomas, tribute to the mem- 
ory of, 320 

Taylor, Father, 123 

Zachary, preferred for President 

by Mr. Lawrence, 258 

Tennctt, Mr., 38 

Texas, letter of Jlr. Lawrence to 
Mayor Chapman, on the an- 
nexation of, 192 

Ticknor, George, 338 

Tobacco, total abstinence from, by Mr. 

Lawrence, 25 

book against, circulated by I\Ir. 

Lawrence, 319 

letter respecting use of, .... 319 
Touro, Judah, his donation for Bun- 
ker Hill Monument, 173 

TurnbuU, Robert, letter from Mr. 

Lawrence to, 100 

Uncle Tom's Cabin, Lady Buxton's 

testimony respecting, .... 325 
Uuitarianism, Mr. Lawrence's opinion 

of, . 24G, 247 

Van Schaick, M., VG 

^'inton, Alexander II., 341 

Wabash College, donation from Jlrs. 

Lawrence to, 309 

Ward, General, 140 



I N U E X . 



369 



Ware, Henry, Jr ji,;; 

AVarreu, John C tU, 170, 'llA 

AVashiugtou, General, ii 

celebration of bis birtli-daj, . . l](i 
Webster, Daniel, letter from Mr. 

Lawrence respecting, . . . (,S GO 
Mr. Lawrence's view of his speech 

in reply to Ilayne, 07 

letter to Mr. Lawrence from, . . 07 
letter to, from Mr. Lawrence, ao- 
companying a presentation of 

plate, ]()2 

letter from to Mr. Lawrence, . . U)3 
remarks on his address at Plym- 
outh, 2US 

view of his character by Mr. 

Lawrence, ;;'_>7 

of his preparation for death, . . :i:j7 
White, Charles, account of his play, 

the "Clergyman's Daughter," 3S, 30 
White, Charles, President of Wabash 

CoUcse, 300 



Whiting, Ilenry, elcrk to ih: Uiw- 

rence, 29 

Will of Amos Lawrence, codicil to, . 271 
^V■illlam3 College, Mr. Lawrence's in- 
terest in, jg2 

donation of S10,UIJU to, by Mr. 

Lawrence, j^jy 

donation of §5,000 by Mr. Law- ' 
rence, for a library building 

at, 211^ 

enlargement of library building 

proposed, 915 

scholarships established in, by 

Mr. Lawrence, o ^5 

account of Mr. Lawrence's bene- 
factions to, 287 201 

donation to, by Jonatlian Pliil- 

'ip-S 320 

Winship, Dr., 302 

Woloott, Trederic, letter to, from Mr. 

Lawrence, 73 



LbFe30 



